Princess of the Damned

  “He left with Lady Nala.” The servant replied. “I don’t think he had any intention of attending.”

  “Lady Nala? The girl is not even a noble! She’s just a lowly dancer! Why would you refer to her with that title?”

  The servant mopped down to the floor. “Forgive me, my queen! His majesty thinks highly of her, so we cannot show her any disrespect. If one day she becomes queen…”

  Essa frowned. “I have never heard of a queen with such low birth. The most she can ever hope to become is a concubine. Summon the guard captain for me.”

  Essa picked up a comb and ran it through her silky hair. The servant returned quickly with the guard captain behind her. They both knelt in front of her.

  “How can I serve you, my queen?” The guard captain asked.

  “Where is his majesty?”

  “Your husband is…”

  “Not that louse!” Essa rolled her eyes. “Where is his majesty, King Sayan?”

  “Prince…I mean, his majesty has left this morning with Lady Nala,” the guard captain quickly replied.

  “I know that, but where are they going?”

  “He did not take any soldiers with him and he didn’t let us know where he was going.”

  “His majesty didn’t take any soldiers with him? How careless of you, guard captain. Who would protect him? Next time, don’t let him head off alone. I want to know where his majesty is anytime of the day. You are dismissed.”

  The guard captain looked at her with a confused expression before exiting the queen’s chamber.

  “My queen, forgive this servant for speaking out of term. Why are you so concerned with his majesty? I thought you would resent him for killing your husband.”

  Essa shivered at the thought of her husband. “How could I love a man who is almost old enough to be my father? Adding to that, he was lecherous and stupid. Sayan will be twenty four this year. He is handsome, daring, and quick-witted. He is a much better match for me.”

  Nala would never forget that day.

  She still vividly remembered the salty breeze of the ocean and the calling of the seagulls soaring above in the open sky. She could still feel the sands, the seashell fragments, and the cold waves at her feet. The warm sunlight was heating up her skin and the wind was picking up her hair. She had never been to the ocean before and she had always wondered what it would be like.

  Sayan did not wear his armor that day, nor was he in noble’s clothing. If she did not know that he was a prince, she could never have guessed. He sat on the sand the entire day watching her and the playful waves. There was a light expression on his face as the wind swooshed through his hair. For some reason, he looked more his age that day.

  The day ended far too early, but at least it ended beautifully. They watched the sun and the majestic red sky disappearing into the water. It was time to go back.

  “I wish I could live near the ocean.” Nala said as they were walking down a meadow filled with tiny purple flowers. It was too dark to see far ahead. “It feels like if I live near it, I can become a part of its beauty. It is a strange thought.”

  “We will stay here for the night,” Sayan said when they encountered a lone tree on the meadow. He tied the horse’s reign to the tree trunk and then spread a thick sheet of fabric on the grass. “Sit here while I start a fire.”

  Nala took off her sandals and flopped onto the sheet. The thick grass added extra cushion. She rolled onto her back and looked up at the night sky. There were countless bright stars scattered across the blue and pale gold sky. From her point of view, the heavens seemed to be rotating behind the still mountains in the distance.

  “Sayan, this reminds me of the days we were still traveling with the caravan.”

  After he had set the fire, he came to sit by her side. “You don’t say.”

  “How many years has it been?”

  “It has been fifteen years.” Sayan rested on his back. “It is still a little strange to me that you haven’t aged a day since I first met you. Maybe you will still look the same when I become an old man.”

  “There is a way to stop time for you, too.”

  “I overheard your conversation with Fai. If you are offering, then I decline.”

  “So you know about it.” Nala smiled at him. “Maybe there will be a day when I might force it on you.”

  “You mean when I am dying?”

  She nodded. “I don’t want you to die, Sayan. Are you afraid that you would change?”

  “The only thing that would change is how you would see me.”

  She blinked in confusion.

  “If immortality means that you will always question my sincerity then I don’t want it.”

  Her heart was racing again. The look in his eyes made her feel weak. All she could focus on were his lips and how good it would feel if she could kiss him. She suddenly felt embarrassed when his eyes read her thoughts. Before she could shy away, he raised his head and kissed her.

  She was tense at first, but she slowly relaxed her muscles. His kiss was both gentle and possessive. His tongue caressed her and led her closer to him. Her body felt hot. Her head was spinning. Passion was a tiny spark that burst into flame in a nest of dry tenders. Her heart ached to kiss him back, and when she did, he tore himself away from her.

  “I’ve crossed the line…” he said. She could feel his breath against her neck. “It was impulsive of me.”

  “I wanted you to kiss me,” she confessed.

  “Don’t say a thing like that now…” he said with uneven breath. “You can’t possibly know what that will lead to.”

  “I have always wanted you to kiss me.”

  He stared at her lips with a painful expression. “We should not let a little physical attraction lead us any further.” He drew in a deep breath and then turned to the other side. “Go to sleep.”

  Just as she was about to close her eyes, she was surprised by his sneeze. Sayan rarely got sick at all, so it is probably allergies to the flowers.

  Sayan’s eyes flew open when he felt a lick on his face. He immediately sat up and found himself among a herd of sheep grazing on the meadow. He pushed some of the sheep aside to look for Nala, but she was nowhere in sight. His first instinct told him to search for her but he felt dizzy as soon as he stood up. His entire body felt heavy as if he was made of lead.

  “Sayan!” Nala ran toward him and then shooed the sheep away. “Don’t get up yet, you have a fever!”

  She helped him sit down with one hand, while the other hand tried to keep balance so that the water would not spill from the folded leaf. “Drink,” she said and then positioned the leaf to direct water into his mouth. “Are you hungry yet?”

  He shook his head. “I just feel a little dizzy.”

  “The sun is coming up. If we stay out here, your condition will get worst. I remember there was a town near this place. How about we try to find a place to stay there?”

  He nodded in agreement.

  “Can you still ride?”

  “I’m not near useless yet.” Sayan said. He got up again and untied the horse from the tree trunk. He mounted the horse first and then helped pull her up. “Do you remember how far it is from here? I did not pay attention when we were passing by.”

  “It is not far at all. There should be a stream at the end of the meadow and after we cross the meadow, there should be a road leading to town.”

  It was exactly as Nala had depicted. It surprised him that she could remember this kind of detail in reverse. Then he remembered something important and he pulled the hood over her head as they were traveling down the road leading to town. He remembered the day that they were still traveling together with the caravan. Her appearance almost always got them into trouble.

  They made it to a tavern at the outskirts of the town by noon. They could have found a better place than this to stay if they went further into town, but at that point, he didn’t really care as long as he could get a place to rest his aching head. There were many beg
gars sitting outside of the tavern with wandering eyes and inside the tavern was a roomful of rowdy men. Sayan kept Nala close to him as they approached the tavern keeper behind the bar.

  “We need a room to stay the night,” Sayan said to the tavern keeper.

  “We are doing a little housekeeping today, so you may have to wait a little for a room.” The tavern keeper replied. “Could I help you to some ale or mead while you wait?”

  “Mead,” Sayan replied and then he took a seat at the end of the bar.

  “Do you need a separate room for the lady there?” The tavern keeper asked when he noticed that it was the figure of a woman.

  It was too risky to let her stay in a separate from him. “My wife and I only need one room.”

  He noticed Nala slightly jerked up when she heard his lie. He quickly guided her to look down again.

  “I think all of these rumors are a bunch of half-ass tales from a senile old man!” The man sitting next to them shouted out. “If that man fought off an entire army by himself and made it out alive, he must be some kind of monster!”

  The room was filled with laughter. “It is unbelievable how they fluff these kinds of thing!”

  “I saw it with my own eyes!” A man with a white beard barked. “When the Red Army came, I had no choice but to hide in the rocks to avoid their detection. There were so many of them that the line went on for hours. A black, ferocious beast jumped out from the dark of the night and destroyed everything in his way. Riding on the beast was the Dark Prince himself! He was a giant, towering over the Red Army with his blade! Blood rained down from the sky and formed a slippery stream. Screams of terror deafened the sky! It is true I tell you! It is all true! The Red Army was in so much disarray that they trampled on one another to escape! ”

  “Go home and take your medicine, old man!” The room was rowdy with laughter again.

  “How else would he have become our king?” The old man asked.

  “That is because he killed his own king! His brother! The man is a traitor, nothing more! I would throw rocks at him if I could!”

  “I agree! The former king should have never adopted that ingrate!”

  “Stop it old man, or we will think that the king has sent you out to spread rumors and terrorize us into submission!”

  “You have to believe me!” The old man desperately yelled out. “You! You believe me right?”

  Sayan turned around when he felt someone’s hand on his shoulder. The old man jumped back and fell backwards onto the floor.

  “It’s him!” The old man cried out while pointing the accusation finger. “That’s him! I would never forget his face! He’s the Dark Prince!”

  The room full of men got up to their feet.

  “You are drunk, sir,” Sayan responded. “I am only a simple shepherd.”

  “I am telling you that it is him!” The old man cried out again.

  The tavern keeper gestured him upstairs. “Your room should be ready about now. Take your wife to the last room on the right.”

  Sayan placed five silver coins on the table in exchange for the key and then headed to the stairs with Nala. He stopped when a man placed a hand on his shoulder.

  “Are you saying this man right here is the Dark Prince, old man?”

  Sayan glared at him and the old man ran out of the tavern screaming.

  A man shoved Sayan’s chest and he staggered backward. The fever was making him drowsy.

  “This man is the Dark Prince? He’s slightly taller than the rest of us, but he is no giant. That old man is completely senile. Why, he can’t even stand firm on his own two feet!”

  Laughter rounded the tavern again.

  “He’s got a lady with him.”

  “Why is she cloaked inside?”

  “He is probably ashamed of being seen with her.”

  “Let us see your face, girl.”

  Nala shook her head.

  “She must be so extremely ugly that she cannot show her face.”

  Another round of laughter circled the tavern.

  “I was born with deformities.” Nala said to them. “My appearance is offensive.”

  “What a sweet voice you have. Let us see your face.”

  She shook her head again.

  When a man tried to reach for her hood, Sayan grabbed him by the wrist and pushed him back.

  “Keep your hand away from my wife!” Sayan warned.

  A man standing behind them reached out and pulled the hood over her head. Sayan swiftly pulled her toward him and pressed her face against his chest. He had been trying to hold himself back and he was at his limit.

  “Her hair! It’s white!”

  “It’s not white, you idiot!”

  “It’s like spider silk!”

  Sayan pulled out a dagger from his waist and held it against the length of his forearm. “We are only passing through. If you offend my wife any further, I will cut you down. Even if I am only a simple shepherd, I won’t stand for another insult!”

  “Ah, he’s serious!” The drunken men backed away.

  Sayan shot a glare at them before leading Nala up the stairs. The feeling of drowsiness returned when they had the privacy of a room. Sayan staggered to the bed and then rolled onto it. His headache felt as if it were killing him. It felt so hot.

  “I didn’t mean to cause trouble for you.” Nala sounded like she was apologizing.

  “It’s not your fault. They are just obnoxious.”

  “Has it always been like this for you?”

  “I can’t say I am not used to it. You are too beautiful for your own good.” He didn’t realize what he had just blurted out. He didn’t mean to lead her on more than he already had.

  “You think I am beautiful, Sayan?”

  “I’m not blind.” He turned to lie on his side.

  “I have honestly always thought that you were ashamed of my strange appearance. You’ve never told me that I am beautiful before.”

  “What I am not used to is how you are acting right now. When were you ever concerned about how I look at you?”

  “It is only recently,” she confessed.

  “Nala?”

  “Yes?”

  “Don’t get confused. I love you to death, but it is very different from the love between a man and a woman. Don’t think into it anymore.”

  Why did he feel a pinch in his chest when he said that to her? It was the truth, wasn’t it?

  “My heart aches a little when I hear you say that, but you are right.” She said after a moment of silence. “Ever since Trent rescued me out of the river, I have been acting strange. I started to feel all kinds of emotions that I have never felt before. I feel like an adolescent girl who has just discovered that she could like someone and you just happened to be there.”

  That name. “I see,” he said softly. The fever is getting to him. His heart is throbbing inside of his chest.

  “It is not fair to you. I think I will try and get to know more people. Perhaps the confusion will clear up once I meet a good man.”

  “Are you thinking of marriage?”

  “Marriage?” She became quiet again.

  “If you have already decided on marriage, I still want you to stay in the palace.”

  “I will not stay in the palace, Sayan.”

  He turned around immediately. “Why?”

  She blushed as she squeezed the water out of the damped cloth. “If I fall in love, I will follow that person to the end of the earth.”

  “You would leave me for that person, Nala?”

  She came to his side and placed the damp cloth on his forehead. “You don’t need me anymore, Sayan.”

  “So your answer is ‘yes’.”

  She didn’t deny it.

  Chapter Twenty-One

  Sayan paused as soon as he stepped foot out of the meeting room. He was momentarily dazed by the young man with an imposing aura standing in the hallway. This man had the second set of platinum hair he had ever seen in his life. Instead of
gentle pale green eyes, the man possessed a pair of translucent blue eyes accompanied by a flawless face and a beautiful still expression. The simple black clothes he wore could not hide his noble birth. Perhaps that was the reason why the guards did not deny him access to the palace.

  Sayan shook his head. Being dazed by a man, that was a first in his life.

  “Your Majesty,” the young man greeted him, but he did not lower his head.

  “Brother!” Nala called out at the end of the hall. She ran to him and hugged him tightly. “I felt your presence in the palace. What are you doing here? Did mother ask about me?”

  “He is your brother, Nala?” Sayan asked.

  Nala smiled and nodded. “This is my one and only brother, Trent.”

  Trent. That name. The series of memories flashed before his eyes. Trent is Nala’s brother? But that would mean…

  “Thank you for taking such good care of my Nala, Your Majesty.”

  His Nala?

  “And here I thought you would never come to visit me.” She tugged him by the arm and led him down the hallway. “Let’s not bother Sayan, he has more important things to do. Brother, I want to ask you more questions.”

  “Nala,” Sayan called out to her. “I am not busy.”

  She did not even hear him.

  “That is wonderful, Your Majesty!” The queen exclaimed as she exited the meeting room. “If you are not busy, then would you please spare me some of your time?”

  Sayan turned to face her. “Certainly, your highness.”

  “Call me Essa,” she insisted. “Formalities make strangers out of us, don’t you agree?”

  “Yes,” Sayan replied.

  “May I call you by your name, Your Majesty?”

  “If that is what you prefer.”

  “I would prefer that very much.” She smiled and then wrapped her arm around his. “Since the death of my husband, I am awfully lonely. Will you escort me to the garden? Spring has arrived and I am curious to see how different it is from the kingdom I grew up in.”

  “Fai, does my brother hate me?”

  The beast lazily looked up at her. He was getting ready for an afternoon nap, but it seemed like it wouldn’t go as planned. He stretched his body and yawned