Chapter 3

CHAPTER 2

18 years later

Luxuria ran as fast as her legs could carry her through the woods. It was close to winter season; the days were quite cold and the nights were numbly freezing. The ground was covered in an ocean of stones and the thimbleweed concealed the sharp twigs which lay underneath, therefore, she had no idea that the twigs and sharp stones were hoping for an unfortunate guest. The trees around the forests were stunted and thin; there was no hiding place. The sky was clear and blue like a watercolor-blue blanket without any tears in it. Clear. Bright.

With her heart pounding so hard against her ribcage and her lungs straining immensely she was finding it so hard to breathe she felt like she would drop dead at any second. Tired and weary, she had to hide. Luxuria knew she must not be caught no matter how tired she was and sore her muscles had become because she has been running for a long time, trying her best to appear invisible and evade her father"s soldiers.

The sharp twig beneath her naked feet cut deep and elicited a moan from her, hurt and reminded that she ran out of the palace barefoot, leaving her footwear behind. She whispered curses as she moved forward, rather than crying out in pain instead. Looking down at her foot, the sight of her blood made her feel queasy and faint. Regardless of the misery she was in, she could not risk being caught. Putting a foot before the other, made her face twitch in pain. However, she must keep running.

The beryl colored dress she wore now looked like rags torn on her skin which also had few cuts and bruises. Frayed at the wrists, the dress now had a dirty shade of bluish-green beyond recognition due to the amount of dust and dirt it accumulated while she ran through the woods.

She could hear footsteps and hooves thundering behind her from a distance. The noise made her stomach churn. In fear, she could not glance back no matter how tempted she felt the need to, time was something she could not afford to lose. The fear seated deep within her stomach, made her legs tremble and she stumbled while running in a blind haste.

"I cannot let them find me. I'll be taunted and punished. The dungeons are cold and has become a haven for spiders and mice. I'll lose my mind if I'm placed there again," Luxuria thought to herself. She stood up and continued running.

"Have you found her yet?" a voice bellowed a few distances away from her.

Luxuria has been running from her father, king Vladimir's men all day. She ran to the woods hoping for safety but it seemed a novelty to ever be safe. Her raven jet-black hair was riddled with twigs and dirt from the woods while she ran.

"Guards! Release the hounds. We must find her before sunset," the voice roared.

Scared at the inhumane guttural noise made by the hounds, Luxuria kept running faster. However, she was knocked down in blinding pain when she hit her feet on an upturned rock. In excruciating pains, Luxuria cried out.

Deep within the woods, she could hear her father's soldiers shouting, informing each other that she was close.

"I think I heard her. Let's go!" the voice bellowed towards her direction.

She ran faster till she felt dizzy and her feet became numb from both cold and the excruciating pain she could not bear again. Unable to run anymore, Luxuria started crawling on both hands and knees which bled more as they came in direct contact with the sharp twigs.

"Don't give up now Luxuria, you can be free this time," She pleaded and urged herself forward.

However, before she moved eight inches from her previous location, she was surrounded by the hellhounds who caught the scent of her blood and howled in pleasure. Resigned to her fate she sobbed helplessly and secretly wished her dream guide could be more than just a dream and save her.

One of the guards ran up to the hounds, steered them away from her and shouted:

"I've found her! We have her here! Hurry!"

The soldiers with their weaponry, horses and the hounds gathered around her. Exhausted from having ran to no avail, after trying to elude them for so long the realization that her escape was fruitless made her sobbed noisily and she eventually lost consciousness.

***

Her hips met his as he cupped her body close. Relief scurried through her belly as his fingers splayed possessively over her skin. Her breasts tightened against his chest, her nipples puckered and taut, arousal bloomed deep as his tongue hot, moist, lazily traced downward from her neck to suck the nipple into his mouth. Luxuria's gasp echoed across the room as he licked and suckled each breast in turn.

She moaned softly and shivered slightly as he cupped the full round globes of her breasts into his palms. He flooded her with a longing that left her muscles quivering in sharp anticipation. He lowered his mouth to hers and his taste flooded her senses. Diving her fingers through his hair while he devoured her lips, her entire body arched to meet him. Passion. Desire. Hunger. She longed for more warmth and the fiery passion he offered.

He pushed her arms above her head until she was still and helpless beneath him, craving and hungry for more. He adored every inch of her skin, sucking and kissing; ensuring she felt the velvet brush of his lips on every part of her body. Luxuria groaned in frustration.

"Please, take me already. Make me yours! she pleaded with eyes closed, the strain evident in her voice.

He touched her cheek and pulled her face towards his, "look into my eyes" he murmured in a husky voice that sent a shudder over her body. Fluttering her eyes open slowly, she eventually looked into his eyes which was glittering dangerously and gasped in surprise, it made her realize how close he was to the edge of his control.

"Throughout my eighteen years of existence, he has always been with me through it all and made my confused life filled with questions quite bearable. Every time I close my eyes to fall into slumber, he's always there to guide me through my sorrows and pain. Dreams. He is not just my anchor who guides me, he's a secret desire who quenches and light up my inner fire.

I'm on fire whenever his voice caresses my soul and his hands adores my body in ways I can never fathom. My dream guide is phenomenal with a voice that sweeter than any song, that sets my heart ablaze. As long as he's with me, nothing else matters."

Gently, he placed a finger above her lips and whispered softly against her ears, "you are a queen, and queens never beg for what is theirs. Do you understand me?" He asks her.

Luxuria nods her head while looking at him, he continued, "You are a queen, you are my destiny!"

Plunged into consciousness by the mice scurrying around her hair, Luxuria jerks up awake, and starts sobbing as soon as she realized that she's trapped inside the dungeon. The echoes of footsteps alerted her that few people were coming to see her.

Looking up to see her father, King Vladimir was no surprise to her. He shook his head, laughed brazenly and said to her, "it's funny how you thought you could outrun my soldiers. Well done! Can you see the mess you have made of yourself? Insolent coward!" He yelled, looking at her with so much detest.

Luxuria sobbed and looked at King Vladimir angrily, "I hate you with everything within me, father!"

Meanwhile, king Vladimir laughed heartily. "You hate me so much but you still call me father? Tsk Tsk Tsk, that means you do not really hate me and you are secretly hoping for the day I'll call you my princess, right?" He laughed mockingly. " My dear Luxuria, the world might consider you princess, but all I see is a useless urchin occupying a space in my kingdom!"

Wiping her tears and standing up to face the king who she has always thought to be her father, "The world might think me a princess, I don't care because I am more than a princess, I am a legend, I am a queen. I am everything you can never be and will never be no matter the amount of effort you put into it. I, Princess Luxuria am a blessing. I don't know what I've ever done to you and mother to ever despise me this much, but one thing I strongly believe is, my life is a treasure to wonderful people I'm yet to meet. For this cause, I won't let your vile words and savage treatment break my spirit. Yes! Father, I will continue to fight you till I break free, and I'm certain I will taste freedom one day. Away from you and your evil cohorts."

She wiped the tears that continuously fell from her eyes and stifled her sobs oblivious to the fear mirrored in the king's eyes as he stared at her scared and mortified by the words she uttered from the deepest part of her heart.

King Vladimir cleared his throat and made a proclamation by hitting his scepter on the ground "I, King Vladimir, protector of the kingdom Byra, guardian of the "Four Tiger Swords" hereby proclaim that in the next three days Princess Luxuria of the kingdom of Byra shall be formally engaged to the Ian Estragon, the royal cobbler!" hitting his scepter on the ground, he concluded his declaration.

The sound of the scepter hitting the ground left a thud in the recess of her heart, she felt like she has been formally caged to a life of doom and disregard. Unable to stomach the disgust at her father's proclamation, she pushed and propelled herself forward towards her father, the king, attempting to grab his robe and plead with him, however, the bars around the dungeon restricted her movements.

She pleaded with him "Please Father, for all that it is worth, don't condemn me to this life of pertinent sadness and misery, I'll do whatever you want, I'll be whoever you will me to be, but please don't do this to me father. Above all things, you are still my sire and that's a fact that will forever be unchanged. Please my Lord, have mercy and pardon me. Your wish will forever be my command but do not condemn me by forcing this engagement on me. My Lord, you are subjecting your throne and your blood line to ridicule if this engagement ever happens. The royal cobbler is deformed and can barely string in six coherent words in his speech, is this the kind of leader you wish to subject the great people of Byra to? Do not forget that whoever gets married to me eventually becomes the next protector of this kingdom and the guardian of the "Four Tiger Swords". The royal cobbler cannot even wield the magnificent sword with all it's might and glory. It hurts my head to imagine him leading the soldiers into war because he cannot even sit astride a horse." She slaps her head shuddering at the imagination that filters across her mind meanwhile the king fully realizes the gravity of his words and blanched.

Happy, that her words were finding a way to his thoughts, she continued "Yes, my Lord you are not only subjecting your only daughter to a lifetime shame, you are also condemning your great kingdom and the legendary sword to a lifelong ridicule and mockery from other kingdoms. Think about this father. You're the king feared amongst others, respected and likened to the God of war, will you be still and leave room for disgrace staining the name you've engraved in the sands of time?"

Looking at Luxuria, King Vladimir burst into laughter. "No matter your trickery, my proclamation still stands. Release her when she's ready to accept my decision."

The king left her behind in the skank dungeon.