Chapter 29

Dawn of Glory [the half-breed]

Chapter twenty-nine

Theme: A Spooky Encounter, part one

Ariana Myers carved her way through Princess Violet's apparel, walking stealthily and watching the front and back at the same time. She could feel her heart pelting in her chest; she could feel her legs throbbing at every step she took. She could feel her intelligence telling her to turn back and run. Her brain was shrieking at her, telling her that once she's caught, it will mean death by hanging.

Even though the small window of Princess Violet's room was wide open, the room was lit by a dim light. Ariana felt as if someone was watching her.

Princess Violet's room was located on the top floor of the purple dragon villa, and that gave the air a chance to gush in. Yet, Ariana Myers could feel herself sweating profusely.

After she finished ransacking the wardrobe and couldn't find anything, Ariana Myers decided to scour further. Though Ariana knew she shouldn't be doing any of these. Yet, she wasn't ready to abort her mission at the same time.

"This is a suicide," she murmured inwardly as she pushed nigher to the princess' inner chamber. The princess room consists of three chambers. Her bedroom, library, and bathroom, as well as her library. Ever since she had been assigned as Princess Violet's nanny, she had never gone past the bedroom and bathroom.

The library was a restricted area that only the princess and her mother were allowed in. Unless she was invited by Princess Violet herself, Ariana Myers wouldn't dare enter the room. She hasn't been to Princess Violet's library before.

Now Ariana could feel herself going against the strict rule of "don't enter the library unless you were invited."

All her life, She had been curious to know what the brutal princess could be stifling in the library.

Perhaps this is the time to check. Ariana thought to herself.

Finally, Ariana could see the door of the chamber ahead. It was standing ten metres away from her position.

"Act brave, Ariana Myers." She whispered to herself again while using her hand to wipe another bead of sweat from her forehead.

"You can do this, Ariana Myers. Just keep on moving." She encouraged herself as she moved towards the door. Ariana could feel her steps getting heavier with each one she took. She felt as if a boulder had been placed on her path, which she was trying to move. Ariana felt as if glue was poured on the floor, which was holding her feet back and slowing her fluff.

Remember, it's a punishment by death if you are caught. Ariana heard her inner voice warning her, and that made her stop in her tracks.

If she was indeed caught, that would mean the end of her life. The thought of that scared her to the bone, and it sent a cold shiver down her body.

She had witnessed how brutal and merciless the royal guards were killing her people, especially her parents. Ariana was sure that she didn't want to be a victim. Even though she was sure that she was going to die one day, she was not ready now. Not yet. She still has many people to assist with Mrs Aurora's food.

That's how she has been doing it ever since she was assigned to babysit. She met Mrs Aurora a week after she arrived at the palace. Just like her mom had always told her, Ariana always helped the poor, and that made them cherish her.

Yet, on second thought, Ariana Myers decided to help the old woman. She smacked her head twice, trying to remember her name again.

"Mrs Sandra," her inner mind told her, and she smiled softly. Even if she was going to die young, she must do something eligible in her life. And if she was able to escape from this dungeon alive, she would forever be grateful to Mrs Sandra.

After a few seconds of debating on the library's door, Ariana decided to step in. She closed her eyes, breathed in, and exhaled softly. She rubbed her palms together and whispered some words, inaudible to the palm. Taking another deep breath, she touched the doorknob, pulled it down, and the door made a creaking sound to indicate that it was open.

Ariana looked around for the last time, just to make sure that nobody was following her. When she was sure that the coast was clear, she opened the door a little wider. Seeing that it was enough to accommodate her, she pushed her body inside and closed the door softly.

The library was much darker than Princess Violet's bedroom. It was so dark that Ariana could feel a strange pang of panic striking her gut. When Mrs Sandra told her that the key was inside a wardrobe in Princess Violet's chamber, she had thought that it was the one beside her dressing mirror.

How wrong was she? Ariana had ransacked everything when she was cleaning the room, and after. Yet, she didn't find anything. Instantly, she spoke to the teddy just like Mrs Sandra had ordered it. That's how she knew that she was talking about the library wardrobe. If it were not for the magic she was performing, Ariana was sure that she wouldn't believe this woman. Not for once.

"Who owns this teddy?" She heard a voice asking from the bedroom, and that made Ariana's heart skip a beat. It was Princess Violet's voice. "I'm sure it belongs to that servant girl." She heard Princess Violet cursing her again, this time accommodated by the loud echo of her scandal, which made her suggest that she was going outside.

She paused and took a breath to calm her nerves. After that, she moved deeper into the library. Thank goodness, it was a small library which isn't big.

She scrutinised the room, her eyes wandering around, and looking for something she could use as a source of light.

Ariana didn't search long when her eyes collided with a table lamp. The lamp was located at the rim of the room, beside the small window of the library. The light from outside did a good job of casting small rays into the room through the window. That's how Ariana was able to see the lamp.

Not wanting to waste another second, she started inching toward the lamp. She was almost there when she suddenly slipped and her buttocks made a loud bang on the wooden floor. That made Ariana whine in pain. She was sure that her ischial tuberosity had been dislocated.

Ariana had been suffering from gluteus muscles since a young age. Now the fall has added to her problem. She managed to drag her body up, and she could feel her bone making a creaking sound, which made her squeeze her face in pain again.

"Get up, soldier, you are almost there," Ariana whispered. She always said this to encourage herself.

After what seemed like forever, Ariana managed to reach the table light. Without wasting any time, she switched on the lamp, and then diverted the ray of light toward the liquid substances that made her slip. Seeing what was in front of her, Ariana couldn't help but gasp in shock. A loud one.

The library floor was filled with human blood. Slowly, Ariana Myers used her eyes to trace the blood to its source. Then she met the scariest things of her life.

Arranged in a layer, on top of a metal cage in the shape of a hanger, are different human bodies. Ariana may now be able to phantom the reason while Princess Violet is lethal. Her mother had been slipping young people inside the library and forced her daughter to kill them.

Ariana Myers initially assumed that the place should smell and stink of rotten corpses. That made her think that her eyes were deceiving her. To satisfy her curiosity, Ariana moved closer to the human body that was hanging upside down on top of a metal cage in the library.

As she inches toward the hanging bodies, perhaps twenty in number, she can't help but gasp louder. Most of them are familiar faces. They are faces she knows very well and has seen before. The bodies were filled with throwing knives of different sizes, which made her suggest that the queen was using them to sharpen her daughter's skills.

Without being told, Ariana knew the purple dragon princess was preserving these bodies by using dark magic.

"Such a wicked soul," she mumbled, with a melancholy tone. Now she was determined to help Mrs Sandra, no matter the circumstances.

"Who goes there?" A frigid female voice was heard outside the library. "Violet, are you in there?" The voice said it again, followed by the footsteps of the being.

Ariana, knowing fully well that she had been burst, quickly surveyed the room with her eyes, wondering where the box she was looking for was placed.

Due to the small expanse of the room, it didn't take more than ten seconds before she found the box. It was placed on top of a table. Ariana quickly switched off the light and made her way toward the box.

She was walking fast and trying not to alert the purple dragon queen of her current location at the same time. The door to the library went open, and Ariana hid under the box's table. She cuddled her body so tight that she could hear her bones making creaking sounds.

From the corner of her eyes, she could see the purple dragon queen scrutinising the room with her eyes. Ariana could see her deep gloomy eyes searching every nook and cranny of the room. She could see her long purple hair standing on her back as if she could inhale danger.

After what seemed like forever, Ariana could see the purple dragon queen turning back and heading toward the exit. Ariana heaves in relief while trying to control her heartbeat at the same time. Her happy moments were cut short when the table lamp fell from her hand. She mistakenly dropped the lamp.

Before she could blink, the purple dragon queen appeared at the in front of the box, and Ariana could feel her heavy breathing. It was so hot. Even from where she was hiding, Ariana could feel her dwelling getting hotter. Thanks to the darkness inside the room, Ariana was sure the queen would have caught her already.

A squealing of rats was heard, and that diverted their attention. Ariana was forced to watch in horror as the innocent rat suddenly burst into flames. The light from the flame illuminated her hidden spot, but the purple dragon wasn't looking in her direction. Ariana thanks her star for that.

After waiting for some minutes again, no sound was heard. Ariana saw the purple dragon queen walking out of the library.

"That was a narrow escape," Her inner mind said, but Ariana shunned it away. She wasn't ready for another encounter. Not from anybody else. If she had taken Mrs Sandra's teddy with her, it could have helped in the matter.

"No way!" Ariana thought again.

Even if the teddy was with her, there was nothing she could do. How would she even be able to whisper any words when the Purple Dragon queen could detect the sound of a ticking clock?

Seeing that the library door has been closed, Ariana Myers quickly stands on her feet. She opened the golden box, and it didn't take her long before she found what she was looking for. It was a small diamond key. The sight of the key made something flash in Ariana's head.

She had heard about the key from Mrs Aurora. She could remember that Mrs Aurora had told her about the key and its function, but she couldn't remember it again. Ariana tapped her foot on the ground, her brain searching for what Mrs Aurora told her about this strange diamond key she was holding.

After what seemed like forever, it finally clicked in her mind. The safe box, the ring of terror, and its wielder. She could remember how Mrs Aurora had told her about the purple dragon husband and everything relating to the three rings of terror.

"Jackpot," Ariana screeched in delight. Not wasting any time again, she made her way out of the library and headed straight to Princess Violet's bathroom. That's where she always saw the strange safe box, so it wasn't hard for her to discover it.

After she had closed the bathroom door, she brought out the small safe box, which was hidden under the princess bathtub. Ariana inserted the key into the keyhole, and it fit perfectly. She twisted the key, and the box made a creaking sound, indicating that it was open.

Just like Mrs Aurora had told her, inside the safe box is the last ring of terror. Ariana picked up the ring instantly, closed the box, and returned it to its position. With one thought, she went back to the library, returned the key to its previous position, and darted out of the room as soon as possible.

Now that she had finished her mission, the problem Ariana now had was that she didn't know where to find Mrs Sandra. It would have been easier if the talking teddy was still with her, but the evil Princess had taken it away.

Instead of lurking around inside the purple dragon villa, Ariana made her way out of the palace. At least it's better than wasting time inside the chamber and risking being caught.

"Such a spooky encounter with the queen," Ariana said as she exited the palace and breathed in the cool night air. Now, she was left with how to exit the city gate.

T.B.C.