Beasts Of Blackcastle

mark of the Beast

Prologue Part Two

And once the sun admired her beauty, the darkness within her soul extinguished its glow and the princess became one with the night that birthed her, once again.

|||||||||| ____ ||||||||||

Princess Venia's beauty was pure, but not without a blemish.

A strange birthmark looked to be carved into the middle of the nape of her neck. The red mark spread across her skin like red ink, like she had bled from that area and that blood was used to shape the birthmark. The skin was taut, pulled together, like she had been branded by hot iron.

The queen's fear was immediate and commoving. King Thorton was in no better shape than his wife. Such marks were often a symbol of doom in some sense. They were afraid, they feared that their daughter was cursed and would not live beyond a few days. Derchuen was home to a few wielders of magic and not all who possesed the power or had the ability to manipulate the forces of magic used it to perform good. The king and queen suspected that one of the sinister witches who hid in their domain had cursed their daughter so the succession line could be threatened. Consumed by fear and driven by the unbridled love he had for his first child, King Thorton ordered for the best witch in the kingdom to be summoned and present herself before him before the night sky breaks, but Allura could not make it that night.

The seasoned witch made it to the palace early in the morning and she examined the little princess for the rest of the day. By night her usual smile had flattened and she had become the bearer of bad news.

"Your majesties, I am afraid I do not have good news," Allura began in a heavy tone, sparking their dreariness. The infant stared on with wonder as Allura removed her from the basin and she observed her with curiosity, "the herbal bath did not cleanse her, she is not cursed, but she bears the mark of the Beast."

"The mark of the Beast?" Queen Nulika exclaimed, her brows knitted together and her face paled by the dooming implications of her words. "What do you mean by that, Allura?"

Allura sighed deeply, then an eery silence followed. Darkness engulfed the opposite side of the large chamber from where they stood and a heavy shadow was cast on the walls. Every single pair of eyes fell on the curtain- less window and gazed at the glary full moon, which was soon shrouded by a thick blanket of gloomy clouds. Darkness reigned and only the mounted flame torches, fire lamps and burning candles remained as the sources of light. Allura shook her head and mumbled some incomprehensible words under her breath.

"This is not a good sign, darkness will follow her everywhere she goes."

"Stop speaking in riddles and tell us what is wrong with our daughter!" King Thorton snapped at the witch and demanded that she stop circulating and get to the important point.

"You know the legend of the Beast king Acion…" Allura trailed off and awaited their reaction, while she gazed at the peaceful princess, whose eyes were wide open and glistening with glee. Most infants would have long succumbed to the call of slumber and slept multiple times, but after hours and hours, she was still as awake as ever and she had not once cried. Allura had instructed the queen not to nurse her until she has examined her, but the little princess did not even appear to be hungry, she just wanted to listen on as much as her parents did.

"Yes, we do," King Thorton answered for the both of them, "everyone in this kingdom knows of the Legend of the Death Grip Forest monster, what does that folktale have to do with our daughter?"

"Believe me, my lord, the legend is real. The Beast has been searching for a bride for centuries and the legend says he will mark the one he chooses the night of a full moon and cast his darkness over her pure soul. I am afraid princess Venia is the chosen one. He must be enamoured by her pristine beauty and the purity of her soul. Princess Venia is a very special child, the strength of her heart is remarkable and her beauty is the rarest there is. The Beast will be watching her until she is at the age he desires, then he will come for her as an unstoppable force when he does so and take her away to his domain in the dead of night. Once he takes her away, she will become his queen and you will never see your daughter again."

Queen Nulika fell on her knees and cast her beseeching gaze to the heavens, she prayed to the gods to have mercy on her child. She had never been so heartbroken, to be dealt with such misfortune after such a difficult pregnancy was deeply unjust.

King Thorton had to be strong for the both of them, as much as the news had discomposed him, he was not conquered by devastation, he was determined to challenge fate. "Tell me you lie, Allura."

"I wish I could, my lord, but that is princess Venia's destiny."

The king suspired deeply, his voice strained by emotion as he asked, "What is the way forward? No one will take my daughter away from me as long as I live, I refuse to accept this. Tell me what needs to be done for my princess to be freed from this atrocious, abominable fate. Who do I need to kill? I am willing to give away as much of my wealth as necessary, I am willing to do whatever you ask of me, even slay the Beast."

Allura admired the King's passion and sheer determination, but he knew as well as her that he was no match for the Beast. Even his biggest army would be incapable of conquering the mighty beast king. But not all hope was lost.

"There is only one thing that can be done, but as consequence, your daughter will face another form of imprisonment, princess Venia will never live a normal life. Are you willing to sacrifice her freedom just to save her from the Beast?"

"Yes!" The king and queen answered in unison.