Wars of the Heart
Amelia Luna-dynn is a young damsel of unassuming character. However, there is a deadly secret she harbors: that she is the daughter of a forbidden race, a tribe despised by the royals of the Kingdom. She is the sole survivor, discreetly living an unseen life as a commoner. But there are scars on her back that betray her origin, requiring her to cleanse herself in order to stay alive and unrecognised. With such reins attached to her race, it is impossible to find someone who would love her despite the dangers of her origin. But one night, when at the verge of being eaten by beasts, she is saved by a mysterious man from the grasp of death. Curiosity drives the damsel to chase love. Despite being downtrodden, she stumbles upon the opportunity meeting with high society by joining a Book Club run by the beautiful daughter of the Duke, Charlene Walterus. Amelia makes friendships with nobles and soon comes close to a romance with a man she suspects to be her secret rescuer, but is hopeless that his heart is far gone in the arms of the duke’s daughter. Will she win a wedding with the man of her dreams? But most importantly, will her fantasies of a perfect marriage come true? Or will she suffer a strained marital relationship, with unrequited feelings, far from the heart of the one she loves? Excerpt: That night, he was exhilarated to have married the woman of his desires. But Charlene had told him a bothersome fact about the origin of his newly wedded wife that he could not shake off his mind, for he knew she would have told him, had it been true. The tall man stepped into Amelia’s chamber and found her seated at the rim of the bed, blushing. The very sight of her innocent disposition had always brought him the insane urge to sweep her up in his arms and protect her. But before they would make love, there was an important question blaring at the edge of his mind. “Y-you’re here”, her soft voice was almost breathless. She rose to her feet, but rested against the wall, shy and nervous. “Amelia”, he tasted her name, drawing close to her. Tenderly placing a finger under her chin and lifting her face to meet his, he gazed into her eyes and asked, “Is it true that you are of the Celeste Clan?” There was silence in response and fear in her eyes. She did not deny it. A strong feeling of hurt enveloped his chest, when he realised that she was no different. Charlene’s words about her were not simply contemptuous lies of jealousy planted to his attention, but the raw truth. ~ Amelia gasped when he rammed his fist against the wall in the absolute pangs of frustration. It was like it burnt his senses to think that she would deliberately hold something as significant as her origin from him, regardless of all things of his secrets that he had shared with her, while they were yet secret lovers. She knew the fault was hers, but she had been too scared to relay, for she had loved him far too much to lose him. “Why did you hide this from me?” he breathed, voice cold and low and deadly, colored by his unpronounced rage. His face was dangerously close to hers, such that she could hear his very breath, seething. Tears began to pierce her eyes, threatening to fall. She had never meant to deceive him. But in that moment, she was afraid. Heart throbbing loud enough to be heard, her lips were quivering and she shivered. When his gaze swept down at her frightened disposition, there was a flicker of tenderness in his eyes. But it lasted not even as long as a moment’s worth. He was cold. He did not confront her for the secrets she was keeping, but silently withdrew himself. There were many things she wished to say in apology, but she could not find her voice. And by the time she could speak, he had left her chambers. Tears flurried down her face. She could not believe that her fears had ruined the very first day of her marriage. It was the day she had wished to divulge her secret to him, but it seemed like it had already been out.
5. The Song of Death's Visit
THE SONG OF DEATH'S VISIT
~
The Lunadynn's Cottage,
The Village of Drift-combe,
Kingdom of Velicia,
Night reigned by a full moon,
The Seventh Night of the Month of November,
Thirty Third Year of the Reign of King Jesse Crestings
~
"Well, she found out", Amelia said, looking over into Jasper's eyes.
There was a gasp in response.
The maiden nodded and went on: "I still remember when she had arrived and was sipping tea my mother had made. She had even seen me and kissed my forehead. She was the softest and loveliest woman I had ever set eyes on. There was a sort of kindness about her that could make you swoon.
She told me that if I visited the Imperial Castle someday, it would make her the happiest. She did not need to, for she was majesty and I, merely the daughter of a tribe. My father was out appraising the gifts she had brought our clan and my mother had stepped out for a moment's time. I was by her Highness when she found the bottle bearing remains of the deadly potion. She roused a call to her guards to send word to the Imperial Castle regarding the shocking find. And just then, my father stepped in and found that she had discovered his ill plans."
Amelia paused to gather her bearings. "And he killed her, in order to keep the secret."
There was a sharp gasp of breath from Jasper, followed by absolute silence. Then, he asked her, "But how did we come to hear of the news anyway? And find that she was murdered by the clan and not perished with the others?"
"Well, my father's marks of blue turned blood red over his body. The other powerful men of our clan saw like conditions. It is a sign that they had committed what the race of healers was forbidden from doing. So in order to cover the murder they wrote to the King that there was an accident whereby the Queen had died, that we were deeply grieved by the situation and were mourning the loss. Then, they turned to hiding the scar of their sins", the pudgy damsel explained.
The young lad, who had spread himself over her bed asked curiously, "How do they cover those marks?"
"Well, it was known that the sanctifying waters of Pristin River could erase the colours on our body for a fortnight, when it is done under the full moon or no moon. In that order, they issued that our clan should cleanse itself that night, before meeting at the heart of Velicia Kingdom for the Queen's Royal Funeral. My father said that we would present to the King our lamentation by this. It was to be a portrayal of our mourning that we would cast away the sign upon our bodies which signifies our being healers, for in our presence, the Queen saw her demise. But in reality, it was to conceal the reddened hues of his skin", Amelia explained.
"Was that the first time you eradicated the markings?" her brother asked.
"Yes", the damsel nodded, brushing a curly brown lock behind her ear. Her hair seemed to have dried sufficiently after her dip that night.
"So, how did the King find out that the Queen was killed?" Jasper asked.
Amelia took a deep breath before resuming her story. "It seems King Jesse had had his natural suspicions and had commanded his Knights to conduct a search of our Celeste Village. It had happened when we were away that night in the River of Pristin. One of the young lads keeping watch hastened to the Banks and told us of what was happening. It was frightening, but before we could rush to the village, the Wolves came for us from the wild."
"The ones that are attacking our village's outskirts?" the boy asked.
"Yes, that had been the first time they had come by. They ravaged through the whole clan and killed everyone they could sight. All my kith and kin perished, in painful bloodshed", Amelia said, her voice fragile and afflicted, breathy from the excruciation of memories.
"And you survived", Jasper said.
"My mother wrapped me close and carried me away as far as she could take me and bestowed me with her closest friend, our mom", the dame said, looking over to Jasper with a smile.
"I remember the day you arrived", he nodded. "She was at our doorstep only momentarily before saying something about the King's vengeance against her and left. The following day, we received news of your clan's death at the fangs of those beasts and the murder of the Queen."
"You were quite sharp for a child of five years", the elder sister acknowledged.
"Until you arrived, I was the oldest of all my peers and our family. Further, the news was frightening, like we were all going to die. It was a scary event that's almost permanently embedded in our memories. I did not know you were of the Celeste clan, for you hadn't had the markings that night. But mom had asked me to fetch you some hot milk from the farm, because we needed to have you fed and we did not contain any at home. Then, you became part of our family", the young lad shrugged.
"The markings only appear at the age of twenty", Amelia nodded. Then, with a shiver, "It was a frightful night", the dame said, burying her face in her sweating palms.
"I wish the tragedy had never happened", Jasper sighed.
Amelia was silent and pensive for a long while before responding, "But if it hadn't played the way it did, I would never have met you."
~