CHAPTER 14:MAA' LIGHT OF ETERNAL SOUL

" You insolent fool " The Lord Paramount striked the guard in front of him .

" What do you mean she's dead " He raged, banging his hand on the table.

" Sir you ordered to starve her as punishment, we didn't know she wouldn't survive " The guard was shaking like a leaf at this point.

" So you are pinning the blame on me? " He glared at the guard hauling the paper weight towards the Young man, who didn't dare to dodge. It almost split his head open.

" Forgive me sir, i wouldn't dare to " he bowed deeply.

The grand duke had specifically assigned him with task of delivering the slaves to the palace, every slave had been carefully counted and branded including the extra the duke had added to the lot.

Now one of his foolish men had starved one of them to death.

This was a big problem, as if he delivered them and they were found incomplete after being counted, he would be in big trouble with the duke and the crown prince himself.

" Shit " Lord carswell cursed, knowing well that the duke had provided both food and cloth for the slaves till they would be delivered to the palace gates, but he had dared to starve one of them.

He needed to do something, they could kidnap a young maiden and just have her fill in. It wasn't like he hadn't done so before.

Just then a guard walked in

" Sire, the report was accurate they had indeed been nursing a stranger " He immediately gave report, knowing the lord hated sluggish poeple.

" Where's the intruder , and the rule breakers " He demanded

" The young maiden is about to begin work in the palace sire, we couldn't touch the king's people. The intruder is a young girl , she's locked in a cellroom "

The magistrate was surprised

It was the first time a young girl was caught as an intruder, it was usually men or a group of bandits .

" Bring the girl in, and send the young maiden a letter of warning, we can't make it seem like we are powerless against them "

Soon Ravenna was brought in and roughly shoved to the ground, her tired face just scanned the room before coming to rest on the lord sitted behind his desk.

His eyes swept all over her body in lust, it was rare to see a beauty like the one in front of him.

Whatever had happened for her to end up in this state??

It was none of his business anyways as his brain was already thinking to place her as replacement for the dead slave.

' Who would know, if he did?, they obviously couldn't keep track of every slave' . He chuckled to himself, at this brilliant opportunity.

If it had been a different situation he would have definitely kept her for his own pleasure, beauties like herself were hard to come by but unfortunately, he had to save his neck first.

" Keep her with the slaves " He ordered much to the guards surprise

Isn't it a risky thing to do?

What if she was a spy?

The guard thought to himself but didn't dare to disobey the lord

Throwing the girl in with the others, he handed her the slave uniform to which she took without batting an eye.

Most girls that were forced into slavery would thrash and try to fight back but she just obeyed and kept mute, which made her even more suspicious to the guards.

However for Ravenna, she was smart enough to understand that it didn't matter what she wanted, the men in power were in control

And for now till her injuries would heal up, she wasn't going to draw attention to herself or try to resist in anyway, as long as they weren't trying to bed her she would pretend to be obedient.

Doing something to warrant a harsh treatment or punishment wasn't something wise to do with her current state.

She glanced around at the unfamiliar faces all staring at her,

' so they were the slaves to be moved to the palace ' She thought to herself, wondering if she would be able to escape the palace grounds the moment she gets in.

She had to escape before the next full moon, it was her only chance to get revenge...

Her current situation didn't even faze her, she was used to the ups and downs of Life, she had grown up facing difficulties and they just never seemed to end.

***

Maurice stared at her mother who was helping her pack for her trip to the palace. The woman was lost in thoughts, she wondered if it was because of Ravenna.

" Mother, Ravenna would be fine, I've sent a letter to Ren, to help look after her " Maurice assured her mother who nodded with a smile.

Now that she was a court maid in the palace her rank had risen a little, with it's perks. Like how the guards had left them unpunished because she worked for the royal family now even though she hadn't started work.

And how she's able to sneak a letter to one of the guards she knew.

Her mother just stared at her with worry, if only her daughter knew what was coming. How couldn't she be worried for Ravenna when the child was strongly bounded by fate to face so many heartbreaking and strenuous events, she had so Much to do at a young age.

She wished she could turn back time and undo what she had done, as it seemed fate was trying to close back the huge gap by leading her towards whom she had tried so hard to hide.

' She wondered how he's faring '

Maurice saw her mother on the verge of tears and dropped whatever she was doing

" Mother, common it's not like I won't see you again.." she laughed hugging her mother.

It was this very woman that had urged her to pack up for the palace and leave by dawn, now she was crying, how childish.

Her mother just said nothing, she knew deep down that death was close by, something powerful had stepped on Ravenna's trail and she would be the first to die.

It wasn't like she was scared of death after all she had died once, what scared her however was having Maurice caught up in the crossfire.

This was why she was sending the girl to the palace a day before her resumption.

" Don't come back home until you have spent a month there , we don't want you getting in trouble" she lovingly patted her daughter's head.

" Yes mother " she obediently nodded, she never knew her mother's name as she said she didn't have one, but Maurice knew this was a lie but her mother must have had a reason to not tell her about it.

If only she knew who her mother was..... Still is.

She was given the name Maa' which meant: light of eternal soul.

The name is an acient title bestowed upon the protector of realms.

Every millennium, a guardian is choosen to guide and protect the realms spiritually. Maa' is said to hold the eternal thread.

a mystical force that binds all realm together

Life,death and the spaces in between.

Although powerful beyond measure, she was still strictly restricted by the strings of fate and destiny she knew this, as along with imense power came bigger flaws and this was hers.

Her younger self without much understanding had intervened in the matters where fate was involved which had now led to the mess she was in.

A punishment greater than her whole existence itself.

Till balance was restored, she was forever stuck as a mortal, with little to no magical powers, bound to die and ressurect over and over again.

As she had severed the bridge between four destinies, fate was joining new gaps and bridges together to create the destined events bound to happen...

' A storm is brewing.... '