Move Forward

"Officers!" Valerya screamed.

"Yes sir," they roared in reply.

"I'm sorry, I didn't ask for a whiny response from a group of bitches. Officers!"

"Yes sir," they yelled more loudly. Each stood at attention, perfectly still, in rows of four. As she walked between them, she looked at them coldly.

The officers waited with bated breaths for her to issue her next command. She had been a complete nightmare since she resumed as an official enforcer four weeks prior. Now a second maestro, Valerya could not resume in her previous office, so she was tasked with the responsibility of training new officers. Each day, the recruits all went home bruised and battered from intense training, but the sadist was unfazed. And each morning they resumed, not daring to be a second late, but still not finding it possible not to offend her somehow. With a bun as tight as the one she had on her head, it was obvious she hated herself far more than they ever would.

"What are you staring at?" she yelled at a scrawny-looking one with glasses in the corner.

"Nothing sir," he yelled back quickly. She stood directly in front of him and leaned in, "I don't believe you, Harry Potter. One hundred laps around the perimeter NOW!"

The young man groaned but as he was about to commence the run, she called back, "And take your best friend with you."

The young man looked confused for a second, before looking at the other recruits. Everyone dodged his look, avoiding his gaze like a bullet. An equally young man was his unfortunate victim as he was chosen from the lineup. Valerya guessed the man was probably picked because he would inflict the least injury on the young man later. The man groaned and tried to explain he didn't know the scrawny guy from anywhere, but on seeing her facial expression, thought better of it and reluctantly went with the man.

"We'll be going through hand-to-hand combat today," she said as she walked through the lines, assessing the recruits. "You, the overweight slob at the corner, against the you-can't-see-me-looking guy in the middle. Fall out!"

Slightly offended, the two participants came out and faced off against each other as everyone watched. They were in the middle of the fight when a silence descended and everyone looked behind Valerya. She turned around, irritated, and got even more so when she saw it was Auguri Anna who was the uninvited guest.

Valerya, and all the recruits, the men who momentarily stopped wrestling included, bowed respectfully at the first lady.

Auguri Anna did not give any of them any acknowledgement. "You. With me, now," she simply gestured to Valerya as she turned and walked calmly away, her back as stiff as a board.

Valerya turned to the men who were supposed to be fighting, "Are your brain cells dead? Did I tell you to stop?" the men quickly returned to their sparring, while Valerya turned around and walked quickly to catch up with the Auguri.

They stood in Valerya's office, bare and devoid of personal items except a framed picture of her with her sister. Auguri Anna picked it up and stared at it sceptically.

"You're the prettier one," she finally said.

"Thank you?"

"I'll cut right to the chase. My dear husband wants you to resume your responsibilities as head of palace security by the end of the month at the latest. He has been unhappy. And if he's unhappy, I'm unhappy as well. You know, because he's my husband."

"Oh wow, I didn't know he was your husband. That's a surprise. Auguri Anna, I appreciate the offer, but I cannot go back there. I hope your husband gets over whatever pain he's going through."

"I don't think you understand me. I simply do not care what you do to him. You may be each other's soul mates for all I damned care. You could be his mistress, and be sleeping with him the rest of your life. I do not care. What I wanted, I got. I am his wife, and that, you would never be. I am the most powerful woman in this empire, and my child would one day be president. I would be bathed with riches, respect and prestige for the rest of my life, something you'll never have. So, dear Valerya, you have my blessing to do whatever it is you want with Davys. As a matter of fact, I'm counting on it."

"You're right. You would have all of that, and your child would be president… that's assuming you're not barren. In which case, you'd be cast away like used trash." Valerya had barely finished the statement when Auguri Anna's hand shot out at her face, like a whip. With quick reflexes, Valerya caught her hand mid-air and shoved it back at her side.

"You dare touch the first lady?" Auguri Anna yelled murderously, her pupils seeming to ignite. "You're free to kill me for that. The truth is, I simply do not care anymore. You and your husband, should leave me alone, or kill me. But I am not going back to the palace."

Auguri Anna picked up the picture and glared maliciously at it. "I won't kill you, Valerya, but I would make you wish you were dead," she said before slamming the photo to the ground, watching the glass shatter into a million fragments.

Her hair seemed to become redder as she spoke, "You would weep in agony, Valerya. You would hate me, but you would despise yourself. Because you would remember this conversation, and you would know that you could have prevented everything that is about to happen to you. Deep down you would know that it would be all your fault. I wish you luck, Valerya, you will need it in the days to come," Auguri Anna said calmly, but her voice betrayed the anger she felt. She gave a last look at Valerya's office before elegantly gliding out. Valerya knew a war had just been declared. She wasn't sure she was ready.