Beasts Of Blackcastle

Chapter Twenty Three

Chapter Twenty Three: Monsters of different kinds with one thing on their minds; who they choose or who they find

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The princess stayed along the river, with the creature of magic being on her mind. For the first time since the fall of light, she felt even a tinge of safety as long as she tread these waters. Of all monsters she could encounter, the worst of them awaited her at the edge of the valley and unbeknownst to her, there was no other path. In the famous words of the one she trusted the most; when it comes to fate, there are no choices. No matter the decisions she made, the wheel circled back to the very same point. Alas, her fate was nothing like she expected.

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Her name was unspoken, she refused to say it despite claiming to be the victim of mistaken identity. They all called her Venia and truly believed that to be her name, so she accepted the name and took it as her own.

In the seven weeks she had been trapped in this strange world, so many things had happened and she had had her fate change countless times. From the time High Law Ian sentenced her to death by asking that she be thrown into a forest known to be home to the most frightening, blood- thirsty monsters, events of great significance to the history of Elysium had taken place and her life had gotten thrice as worse. The Ill treatment became her norm once the man who had promised her to make her wish for a quick death was given more than enough resources and authority to do so. High Law Ian was appointed king three weeks after the former king had been laid to rest as the king's only heir had been the one to brutally murder him and such treason could not be rewarded with the throne. Venia understood now that the new king and his subjects planned on making her life a living hell for as long as she lives.

To be whipped at the slightest whim of any servant or worse the king was not even the worst of it; it was the darkness they kept her confined in that consumed her soul. In these awful times with her deplorable, miserable existence, her beauty had surprisingly not faded even slightly. Even the woman herself could not believe how gorgeous this body she was trapped in was. Her beauty invited all sorts of unwanted attention; guards and other male servants felt it to their pleasure to make a toy out of her body and she was groped pn a daily basis. King Ian had supposedly enforced a law that prevented them from doing worse than forcibly kissing any part of her they wished, as he believed that her purity had to be maintained and she could not get pregnant by just any lowly creature. The three fools to once try to probe her canal had been captured and had their hands and tongue cut off and also each lost a right eye. King Ian ruled with an iron fist, he was not a being to be messed with at all, but still there were those far more powerful who wanted to challenge him.

With her beauty in tact, Venia was the object of envy of all other females. Even the queen resented her because of her extremely foolish insecurities. The spineless b***h had even gone to lengths to torture her because of her delusions. She had accused her of trying to seduce king Ian and that was the most ridiculous thing she had ever heard a person say. It was quite obvious that the king found her disgusting but there was no reasoning with that evil b***h. The only consolation that Venia had was that she had some companions on her side; developing a friendship with the three daughters of king Ian was something she would have never seen coming or dreamt of. But Vye, Iyena and Bess were the only ones who treated her well and were convinced of her innocence. Even though they didn't believe that she was from another world and that her soul had been transferred to another body, at least they always assured her that they would never mistake her for a murderer.

“You're so sweet and innocent, you'd never hurt even a fyx.” Iyene liked to say to her. A fyx was a small creature the faes liked to keep as pets and it was as cute as a puppy even though not particularly harmless.

Living as a murderer was of course worse than dying as a murderer. She would have preferred death over this misery certainly and that is exactly what king Ian was counting on.

The kingdom was in trouble however. After the king was murdered, there was an outbreak of chaos and some allies of the king ended up siding with his enemies because they did not know what their fate will be in the presence of a new king and that is when the attacks on the kingdom began. Monsters were ravaging the west borders and causing significant losses and seeing as the new king had no supernatural powers of his own, he knew that he needed a witch to intervene. The witches however warned him that the king of the beasts attacking his people had already been strengthened with dark forces and that made him incredibly powerful. The only way out for now was to negotiate.

Some called him the Alpha king, some called him the Beast king and one thing was certain; King Arsix was an unstoppable force with a great agenda. He wanted to conquer all realms and king Ian could not let him do that.

After sending numerous gifts to appease him, king Ian finally meet with the alpha king. As expected the man was haughty and looked just as powerful. He rode on dragon back and had wolves for an entourage. His wolves were big and ferocius, they circled the king, so did his other guards in human form.

The beast king was the only king that king Ian feared. Upon settling down, king Ian uttered out a question.

“King Arsix, welcome to my palace. Did you find the tributes I sent you to your liking?”

Alpha Arsix only sneered and gave him a rather disparaging look but said nothing.

Desperate, king Ian made another offer,” I can give you more to your satisfaction.”

King Arsix again sneered and then addressed king Ian in a degrading tone, “I do not need your gold, rubies and animals.” It had been said that king Arsix was very hard to please, king Ian just didn't think it'll be to this extent.

He wasn't after wealth or feed, what else could a king possibly need? King Ian humbled himself and asked, “Then what is it that you desire in exchange for peace?”

King Arsix took his time searing him with his eyes before he finally said, “You really do not have a clue, do you? To seal peace between the two kingdoms they must be unified.” He put it vaguely.

This was a test king Ian was going to fail. He had made king Arsix aware that he was never going to give up his kingdom, so what else could he mean by his words?

“What do you mean? Unified through what means?” King Ian tried to sway the Alpha king from that path. “If it is land you desire, I am willing to offer you a stretch of our forest, best fit as a hunting ground for your people. The wind whispered to my ear the troubles you have been facing over the scarce population of feed your hunting grounds now hosts and-”

King Ian was silenced immediately by a guttural growl and the alpha irately told him,

“Never interrupt me again. You're a moron, king Ian and I won't let you waste more of my time. I will say it to you plainly, I want one of your daughters. I will stop launching attacks on your kingdom if you give me one of the princesses as tribute.”

As unexpected as the demand was, King Ian lost no breath to the Alpha king's irately spoken demand. This tradition was as old as time and it was actually not as much a loss; a loss was what he had braced himself for when he secured this meeting but now King Ian could breathe easily knowing that what the beast king wants is something he can afford and easily provide.

“I see,” king Ian hummed to himself, “if that is what you desire, then I shall give to you my best daughter. My daughters are all beautiful and talented, I am sure you will find them to your liking.” King Ian immediately began making plans to seal the deal as soon as possible.

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The said princesses were no where to be found. The three young women had snuck into Venia's room after she was released to it that morning and they had wrapped some condiments and meat into their gowns, knowing that Venia must be hungry. It was no surprise for her to go days without a single drop of water, their father was very cruel to princess Venia, so much so it was a miracle that she remained this beautiful.

The maid that king Ian had sent to fetch the princesses barged into the room unexpectedly and caught princess Iyene unwrapping the tool of her gown to take out the smoked leg she had taken. The alarmed princesses had no idea what was going on and they feared they might have gotten Venia into trouble , but the maid was still new on duty and seemed not to see anything wrong with her actions.

“You will say not a word of what you saw to the king, understood?” The eldest of the sisters threatened the girl.

Since all the royal young maidens were called, Princess Bess youngest of her sisters , and princess Iyene the eldest and first princess and Vye the second born daughter of the king, decided to urge Venia to come with them because she's also a princess. Princess Venia of course did not agree in fear of what king Ian would do to her if he saw her.

“I am no longer a princess, I was stripped of my title and royal status.” Venia nervously said. She was not going to let them convince her. She couldn't for her sake.

“That is nonsense,” Iyene uttered passionately, “your father was the king, his father was the king, your bloodline is royal, you are much more of a princess than we'll ever be.”

“That was before they framed me as a ruthless murderer.” Venia replied. “Please go on without me… just look at me, I'm no princess.” Venia eyed the dirty gown she had on and cast her stare down.

“I understand that you'll be too ashamed to present yourself in such a condition. It's just not right. We would not dare let you go out in the more than undesirable cloth you're wearing. I'll borrow you one of my gowns, I'm pretty sure it'll fit, we're the same size I'm thinking.” Bess offered with this hopeful look in her eyes.

The princesses circled Venia and smiled so sweetly at her she felt her defiance crumbling. After more sweet urging and irresistible sweet words, Venia eventually agreed even though she was terrified of the predicted severity of king Ian’s reaction.

She was indeed very curious and wondered to no end what was going on but knew that the council is not here so this is not what this was about. Iyene brushed her hair while the princesses discussed what their father could be summoning them for.

Venia suggested that she thinks the issue is regarding the upcoming Svore Ball and that is when Iyene commented that if it is that, then she has as much right as they do to attend the ball. The ball was one big, organized dating scene, there was no way Venia could get an invitation to potentially meet anyone.

After much consideration, Venia refused Bess's gown, fearing punishment from king Bale because he will know that the gown does not belong to her and might accuse her of stealing it. After the king accused her of stealing the staff, her clothes were burned except the gown she had on the very night that she woke up here. She had heard from others that it was her mother's gown. During the search she had hid it under her bed so it remained safe and was not confiscated. The gown however was dirty and had some small blood stains from the time she bled during her punishments and was also a bit wet because she had foolishly tried to wash off the stains.

“I don't understand how father can be so cruel to you.” The youngest princess cried out and took both of Venia's hands and gazed deeply into her eyes. “I will not allow father to keep treating you this way. I promises you that I will work very hard and I will find a prince or king to marry me at the Ball so I can take you away from this kingdom.”

“If she does not succeed that night then I promise you that we will.” The first princess assured her and they all told each other that they love each other.

It was such a touching moment that Venia felt she did not deserve. She dried up her tears and told them in a trembling voice, “Everything will be okay. I will be fine and even if I am not, please put yourselves first.”

The maid from earlier returned and made the princesses aware of their father's impatience and while riddled with nerves, the four young women hesitantly left the room. What annoyed the princesses even more was that they had to seperate themselves from Venia. Keeping a distance from her was all for the sake of avoiding king Ian's suspicion that they came from her room and that they've been treating her kindly because they do not want her to be sent away. King Ian had threatened them with giving her away to the monsters more times than they could count.

The maid announced their entry and the four women walked into the throne room and the princesses immediately noticed Arsix and their stomachs clenched in fear because they all know who he is and of his reputation. Again like it had been happening, Venia had a memory of the beast king and was as deeply terrified of him. She knew exactly who he was and what he stood for.

The beast king Arsix was infamous and had established himself a perfect status as a monster. He was known to be a ruthless, merciless, heartless brute who will not hesitate to rip apart anything in his path to shreds. He was the danger, he was the most frightening thing in all kingdoms and realms and he was the worst monster in the history of all monsters; because unlike the dark legends, he lived and existed in their time. The beast king had conquered and annexed many kingdoms and his pack was unstoppable.

The young women knelt in front of both men and Venia almost immediately felt the beast king Arsix's eyes follow her but she kept her stare downcast because someone of low rank like her looking him in the eyes would be insulting him and undermining his eminence.

King Ian could not believe his eyes. He had requested for royal maidens and his daughters to be summoned so what was the meaning of this? Before anything could proceed, king Ian immediately grimaced in digust and voiced out his anger at the sight of her,

“What is the meaning of this? What is she doing here? How dare this piece of filth enter my throne room!”

Princess Bess was quick to come to Venia’s defense and she spoke quite boldly. “Princess Venia is here because she is of royal blood as well-”

The princess also had a lot of cheeky retorts, but before she could get to that part, her father quickly warned her to hold her tongue,

“Bess! I never addressed you so I expect no words from you. You will not speak unless spoken to, do not make such a mistake again.”

The king reprimanded his daughter and then proceeded to rudely order for Venia to leave, but before she could gather herself from the ground, the beast king Arsix shocked the soul out of king Ian with his unexpected utterances,

“No, she should stay. She is the one I want.” His words were firm and the look in his eyes ever dark and cold.

An immediate, deafening silence befell the room and a look of terror was etched on each of the young women's faces. Venia was horrified, to a point where she could not hold her tongue anymore.

“Want for what?!” She blurted out and was immediately made to regret it.

Venia was immediately punished by the lashing tongue of the king and as always he left her feeling worthless and insignificant. “How dare you open your filthy mouth in my throne room?! You will lose that tongue, don't test me.” King Ian's attention shifted back to the enigmatic alpha king who was continuing to make his life very difficult. “My king, the girl is no longer a princess. She is nothing but a wicked, devious being. She is a murderer and has been reverted to nothing but a worthless slave. I had set her execution but spared her because death would be too good for her. Do not let her beauty deceive you, she is an unpredictable, despicable w***e. You can pick from any of my three princesses. My daughters are the best matches for you, my king, if you want a gift worthy of a king such as yourself, then my Bess, Iyene or Vye will be the best. They are women of the highest grade-”

Another guttural growl silenced king Ian. King Arsix mordantly warned him to never doubt his judgement again before he uttered yet another shocking question.

“Is she is chaste?”

Venia gulped uneasily. She did not know if it will be a good thing if she is not or if it will be to her advantage if she is. She did not know about the true owner of this body, but in her world she was very unlucky in romance and had never even gotten her first kiss from a male.

King Ian provided a prompt reply, “No, she is not, like I've mentioned, she is a w***e. I might even say she is the biggest w***e in the whole kingdom. She is filthy and uses her beauty to lure and seduce men.”

“THAT IS NOT TRUE!” Vye shouted out in exasperation and before her father could silence her, her sister snapped the same.

“EVERYTHING YOU SPEAK OF ARE LIES. How cruel of you father to insinuate that she called upon the abuse she suffers from your repulsive, depraved servants on herself. You are the one responsible for the condition she is in.” Iyene was barely done when Bess interjected heatedly.

“Tell the truth, father. You've only been a king for one full moon and you already crave popularity as a dishonest king. You and everyone else out there know that princess Venia, the rightful heir to the throne you now seat on was unmarried and-”

“That is enough!” King Ian bellowed, his voice coming out as strongly as a wrathful roar. “Fine, I will say it. I know my laws are well known. The girl is chaste, your highness, but she is NOT my daughter and that her status as a maiden does not excuse her filth. She cannot be trusted and will only bring upon you, dark, heavy curses.”

The alpha king’ s eyes burned into him as he snarled at him, “Enough of your nonsense. You are pathetic and an even bigger fool for questioning my judgement. I do not care what you have to say, she is the one I want.”

“BUT WHY? WANT FOR WHAT?” Venia screamed inwardly. She had never been more bewildered and more terrified her entire life because in that moment she knew that this beast king, that this notorious king of monsters had decided her fate.