Death Without Dignity

"So now that we've cleared your delusions of our wedding, shall we discuss the actual reason for your arrival? Surely you haven't come to attend to my pleasure? Not that you were any good at that, to begin with."

He was taken back by her sudden shift in tone.

Adalyn spoke with poise and poison, jewel-like eyes sharply staring at him. Formality was a luxury, and to the Empress of Hanafleur, her husband didn't deserve it. Like water from a fountain, lies flowed from Ryland's mouth. He lied about how happy they were as a married couple, and openly lied about his prowess in the bedroom.

Of course, he would lie about the safety of their child too.

"You speak as though I have some hidden agenda. My plans remain as they always were, beloved Empress. To tend to the needs of the empire and its citizenry."

An expression was worth a thousand words unsaid, or so Blaine taught her.

Hers was an expression of pure scorn and resentment. The blonde-haired man leaned against the bed, a sly smirk lining his character. It was as though he dared to smile at his wife's temper.

"I see you still don't know when to smile and when not."

Ryland waved his hand dismissively, "You should be more careful, Adalyn, if someone were to hear you, they'd assume you're displeased with me. Your reputation among the nobles is already in the gutter. You can't sink any lower, can you?"

"I'd sink to the depths of the damned if it meant I no longer had to deal with you," Adalyn shot back, "It is one thing for his Imperial Majesty to lie to me, but another to the public. They are not as complacent as I."

"Again with the accusations! I guess the academy didn't call you Adalyn the Accuser for no reason at all. And do you have evidence to support your outlandish claims?"

"Outlandish? You swore to me and the Royal Court that our losses in this expedition were minimal. You sent a team of thirty thousand soldiers, Ryland. The last report says our numbers are under five thousand! Ryland Maverick, you didn't send those men to war - you sent them to slaughter!"

Ryland's face paled - a ghostly look washed over his already snow-like skin, creating the image of a walking corpse. He quickly changed from shock to rage, ears flushed pink as he furrowed his brows.

"Where did you see that information? You don't have permission to view the General's War Reports. You've broken your agreement-"

It was at that moment; the hairs of Adalyn's skin stood at attention.

The blood beneath her skin was scorching as she clenched her fist tightly. Her neatly polished red nails dug into her palms, a grip so firm it drew blood. Adalyn took a deep breath, sighing to regain composure. She released her tight fist. The blood dripped from her hands to the floor, and the Empress grabbed the linen sheets from the bed to stop herself from bleeding.

"Lecture me not on my permissions, Ryland. For just as you are Emperor, I am Empress of Hanafleur. Any records hidden will be brought to my attention. Any lies you spit; I will find the truth behind them," Adalyn said in a hushed tone, "Let us stop this foolish charade."

"What charade, wife?"

"The charade of you pretending to fret over me. I want not your pity nor your lies. I want justice and answers. I stand for the people of this Empire."

"A people that abhor you?" Ryland laughed, "The nobles gossip behind your back, your servants constantly disobey you and you sit in an empty palace, wife! You are no woman of the people. Millie is more graceful and well-loved than you'll ever be!"

"Marchioness Shulburg can have your grace."

Adalyn threw the sheet onto the floor. Her eyes fell to her husband. An unnerving glare of steel pierced his skin.

"I'd rather be a graceless gutter rat than an obedient pawn to a selfish madman," She said sharply, "Now I will say it again. For what purpose have you entered my chambers, Ryland?"

"Why must you be like this? Do you think I wanted this? To be married to a woman who views me as a monster?!" the Emperor raised his voice, "Who assumes because I keep secrets that I hate her entire being? I am a benevolent man, Adalyn. I continue to serve this Empire as a true leader and as a just one!"

"If you didn't hate me, Ryland, you would have told me my son was injured two weeks ago during a raid on their camp."

Silence, finally.

He stood there silent - almost as though he wasn't expecting her to say anything about that. Tension no longer filled the air, but it remained an awkward silence. The Emperor of Hanafleur stared at his wife for an extended period. He cleared his throat and glanced to the side, eyes lingering on the distant flicker of a candle's flame.

"You are my wife, Adalyn. I refrained from telling you to avoid your worries," Ryland brooded, "I desire you not to fret over tiny matters."

"Few things in life are bottomless, husband. The wealth of oil in the soil beneath us, the love a true mother has for her children," Adalyn replied as she leaned closer to him, "And your arrogance, it appears. I am Jaxen's mother, Ryland. I am supposed to worry about my child's well being. So might you try another excuse?"

A knock on the wooden door disrupted their conversation.

Or was it more of an argument?

Adalyn was secretly grateful for the interruption. Her shaking hands clenched once more. Her receding rage was the primary cause of her tremors, alongside her earlier bleeding. She sat on the bed, gesturing for Ryland to open the door.

Servants seldom came to her at this hours, so inevitably it was meant for him.

The Emperor of Hanafleur went to the wooden door and opened it. Adalyn grabbed the wine bottle and glass from the nearby end table, pouring herself another drink of wine. From the corner of her eyes, she caught a glimpse of the servant.

A petit man, then again most people were to her, with sandy blonde hair and blue eyes. She recognised him. He served as a member of her husband's army. She was unsure of his name, but Adalyn recalled him a Brigadier General.

He was usually more upbeat. His face was weary and depressed. What could have possibly sombre his mood?

Her husband spoke with disbelief, "Dante, such news would mean...Are the reports positive?"

"His Imperial Majesty has my condolences."

"Condolences? Over what?"

She spoke out loud, but it didn't take her long to realise what the conversation was over. The Empress of Hanafleur dropped her wine glass with a loud shatter, disrupting the endless quiet of the Imperial Palace. The dark red fluid spilt over the wooden floors, flowing to stain the white rug deep red.

Like clockwork, her mind connected the dots.

The note that came from Mister Rollins mentioned the return of the Rose Battalion to the capital city. The paper tied to the crow hastily scribbled warnings of a surprise siege on the Expedition camp where many were injured.

If Jaxen was already in critical condition before the siege, would it not have worsened during the attack?

"Don't you dare tell me my child is dead."

The Emperor said nothing - he could barely meet the gaze of his wife. The Brigadier General, Dante, cleared his throat and spoke in a hushed tone.

"It is a dark day for the Empire. Her Imperial Highness and His Imperial Majesty have lost their child. Crown Prince Jaxen did not survive the surprise attack by the Willburg Kingdom. The Rose Battalion has retreated, and are en route to return with his body."

"My son is dead."

"The Empire has lost it's only heir," Ryland said as he punched the wall, "And you are too old to birth another."

"That's your concern?" Adalyn's eyes widened in disbelief, "Your child is dead. My son died in a battle that you started over your bruised ego!"

"There is no time to mourn, without an heir the Empire is weak!"

"My child is dead, Ryland. I will mourn as I see fit!" Adalyn cried as tears began to flow, "I begged you not to send him on that revenge quest. It was doomed from the start, but pride was more important than the lives of our soldiers and our fucking child!"

"Adalyn now is not the time to cast blame! If you're angry, take it out on the Willburgs!"

"I will cast blame on the man responsible for his murder," Adalyn spat as she walked closer to Ryland, "And that man is you, Ryland. So I must ask, are you satisfied? Everything I love is dead, are you satisfied with your accomplishments?"

"How can I be satisfied when I have a woman who looks at me like a monster for a wife?"

"I assure you, Ryland, in my eyes you are no monster. You've sunk far below that."

A cold sweat drenched her body as Adalyn stormed out of the room. The Empress could no longer endure sharing a space with Ryland any longer.

It was too much.

Bile burnt her throat as her heart pounded, racing as she ran through the dimly lit corridors of the Imperial Palace. Tears streamed her face; vulgar wails echoed in the empty halls. Her body was trembling, this strange mixture of guilt, grief and rage violently shaking her being.

Adalyn collapsed onto the floor with a tumultuous thud, through watery eyes she saw her reflection in the pristine white tiles.

She was a discordant soul pretending to be an orderly one. She was not happy here. She had never been happy here. Adalyn de Montgomery was just a foolish woman who wasted her life on people who never cared about her. An ill-advised woman who lost her son because she didn't have the fight inside her to stand up for him.

"My beloved child, you died with dignity serving this country," Adalyn muttered as she wiped her tears, "I hope you rest with my parents in Amara's embrace. And may your mother not be such a fool in her next life."

To die with dignity, would Adalyn have such a grace?

She clenched her chest as a sharp pain interrupted her thoughts. An all-consuming cold rushed down her spine, as the colours around her became blurry. She tried to move but immediately lost balance, falling over like a newly born calf.

"Someone-"

She screamed for help, but there was no one to hear her.

Adalyn de Montgomery died that night, writhing in an unfamiliar pain on the palace floor.