When Kiandra awoke
this time, it took only a few moments for everything to come falling into
place, even as she found herself laid in a wide, silk-laid bed in a room filled
with flowers, mirrors and large windows which opened up to an outside filled
with no sky, but an elemental force that seemed to billow about them like a
perpetual wind. She remembered the sound from the day she’d been walking on
that quiet street, which felt like so long ago…
She looked up when
a door opened and three girls came in. she could tell they were maids of some
sort from their simple attire of long cotton shift and unclad feet, and their
face and hair, though similar to that of the Peata woman, seemed less refined
and formed. Kiandra shrunk back instinctively into the sheets which covered
what she suddenly realized was her naked frame.
They did not look
at her, but went about their task of setting a table with the trays of food
they had brought. Kiandra could only watch with suspicion, which heightened
when they soon left and Peata appeared in their wake. This time she was dressed
in a light, though exquisitely patterned dress that was cut in half down the
front almost to her navel, revealing the soft curves of her green-like breasts.
She smiled gently at the staring Kiandra.
“You like my
dress,” she stated, coming to sit at the edge of the bed. “There’s one like it
for you in the wardrobe, once you are ready to put something on. But now, you
must be hungry. You haven’t eaten in almost a week.”
At her words,
Kiandra felt the sudden realization that she was famished, had only never become conscious of the fact till
Peata had mentioned it. As if the woman had some power over her mind and urges.
This thought scared her some more. She did not move.
“Go on, eat,” Peata
said, indicating the well-spread table close by. “There’s water and wine, and
the meat was prepared specially for you. We know how much you humans love your
bloodfood.” This she said with a slight, pretty grimace as if in distaste, as
she rose fluidly to her feet. She looked down at Kiandra, who glared back
silently.
“You’ll have to see
me as your friend and ally, Kiandra. I have been assigned to bide with you
through this. It is my duty to care for you, to help you. I will leave you to
eat now, but I will be back.” And without another word, she left the room,
closing the door with a soft click that followed with the sound of locking.
No escape there,
thought Kiandra, whose first action was to jump out of the bed and head for the
wardrobe in the corner, which held one single dress as Peata had promised. It
looked much like hers as well, but in a different, even more alluring color of
pink mixed with shades of green and yellow. She rushed to put it on not out of
admiration but of a necessity to clothe herself. No way she was going to be
lying about naked around here, especially as she would be thinking of how to
escape. But now she was almost weak with hunger. Once dressed, she dashed to
the loaded table, grabbed up the cutlery lying by, and dug into the food. The
meat was wonderfully flavored and cooked in stew, like nothing she had ever
tasted, and she had a bit of everything else that had been prepared, all
foreign and strange to her but no less delicious. But then her enjoyment fled
when she thought of Leon and the meal he had been preparing for her that last
day. Would she ever see him again? She wondered as a single tear burst from her
eyes and fell into the laden plate beneath. Would she ever see her home, her
world again?
You can never go home.
Those words came to her then, and she pushed
the food aside, rising and going to the open window as she looked out at the
strangeness afar. Where was this place, she marvelled, and how could she be
free from it?
Suddenly, the door
was unlocked again and Peata returned. Kiandra was glad now that she had
thought to clothe herself first, especially when she realized that Peata had
not come alone.
Inside the room
with them stood the strangest man Kiandra had ever seen. He was tall, almost
devilishly handsome with piercing dark eyes and arresting face. His body was
well-built and perfectly formed down to his boot-clad feet. He was dressed like
some sort of warrior, or maybe it was just the way he stood, like someone who
got things done. He had the same kind of otherwordly skin like Peata, but less
pale and soft. He ran his eyes over her half-exposed form, as due to being more
heavily endowed than Peata, she had more on display in the slashed-front dress
she wore, and she tried in vain to pull the gaping bodice closed.
“My name is Fen,”
he told her, and she shivered at the odd sound of his tongue. She marvelled
that she could understand them, that they spoke the same language although it
was obvious they were not part of her world. They couldn’t be.
“It was I who
brought you here, Kiandra,” he continued, and her name seemed so strange when
he said it; it was almost like a caress, from which she instantly recoiled. She
felt some kind of force between them she could not understand, and felt anger
to know he was responsible for her being in this place.
“How was it
possible? How could you just…abduct me? Was I drugged?” she demanded to know.
She saw them both share a silent look, before Peata chose to answer.
“We function,
Kiandra, in ways you can not begin to understand now. This is why your people
have never known of us, although we know all about you. Destructive, greedy
humans, you have exploited this earth from the beginning of time. It has been
our duty to keep the whole world from disintegrating, to keep it alive and well
as it was intended when it was Created.”
“So, what are you
guys?” Kiandra asked derisively, “Protectors of the Universe? Mother Nature’s
avenging angels?” This time, the other
two shared amused smiles, and she felt annoyed. “Something like that,” Peata
murmured.
Kiandra stomped her
feet. “I don’t give a f-ck what you are!” she cried hoarsely. “I want no part
of you, of your world, or your master plan!” She remembered every word Peata
had spoken to her earlier, especially those last words that seemed more and
more ominous when she thought of them. “And I will go home. I demand to be
returned home.”
This time, Fen
thought it fit to reply. “It’s just not possible, I thought my cousin, Peata
told you that. Once you cross the realm, you can not go back. For you, there
can be no return. To try to would mean your death.”
“Then I would
rather die!” she said hysterically, and lunged for the window, not knowing what
she intended as she threw a foot over the ledge, perhaps to jump into the crazy
nothingness beyond. But the sudden feel of Fen’s arms about her waist, dragging
her back into the room, stopped her. She fought against his formidable frame,
but he held her strongly and tightly. Then she looked up, up into the dark
pools of his eyes and stilled as if mesmerized.
“You belong to our
world now, Kiandra. It was meant from the day you were born. It took us some
time to find you, but we did. Now you must be part of us. Accept it.”
“No, I won’t,” she half whispered, her hands pressing
against his chest so that she soon had a sense of the pound of his heart
against her skin. Part of her was terrified of his power, another part was
drawn to him physically in no way that was humanly possible. She felt the manly
length of him against her, and realized in some ways at least, he was indeed
like man. He had a beating heart, and his body responded to hers like a man
would. Just by holding her close like this, she could tell, with her deep-set
female intuition, that he wanted her.
As if reading her
mind, he let her go abruptly, and she had to reach out and grab a nearby chair
so as not to lose her balance. He made for the door, brushing past the watching
Peata.
“Prepare her,
cousin. Soon, Marsh would request her presence. She must be ready,” he said in
passing, and without a backward glance, left the room.
“Yes, Fen,” Peata
replied, but he was already gone. She faced the standing, trembling Kiandra,
her expression annoyed. “You will do well no to infuriate Fen. Nor Marsh. It
wouldn’t help your matter in the slightest. Just like your world, and even more
so, the men rule here. They are our lords and masters, to be obeyed and
esteemed.”
Kiandra could
assimilate only one word. It was the second time it had been mentioned, and she
felt pricked by curiosity and even more fear. “Who… is Marsh?”
Peata’s chin rose a
fraction, as if in pride. “My brother. The thirtieth leader of Emeraldom, the
source of harmony and the essence of our very realm. He is to be your husband.”
“My… what?” Kiandra breathed, as for once she had an
inkling of what was to be her use in this hateful place.
The other woman
shrugged. “You were brought here to be his bride, to bear his sons, or at
least, the next Marsh. It has been presaged long ago that our kind would be
forced to merge with yours in order for the balance of our world – and essentially
yours, to be maintained. We would not have wished it, but,” again she shrugged.
“We have no choice. We have resisted it for so long. But now, our males
outnumber us females almost two hundred to one. It has been generations since
one family has had more than one girl child, if at all. But that is not the
only reason we have chosen you. I am the last of the child-bearing female
ruling class, and as you can imagine, I cannot mate with my brother – and
neither can he mate with any other than one of high blood. You have been shown
to fit the bill well enough, as somehow, I don’t know, your essence is entwined
with ours. Perhaps when you meet my brother, he will explain better.” She
looked upon Kiandra’s horror-filled face with surprise and the first show of
anger.
“What is the matter
with you? You should be honored to be so chosen. The first girl we picked was
even glad, and she welcomed her role. She loved
Marsh. But it was not her lot to
bear his heir.”
Kiandra gulped at
the thought that perhaps, another woman had been a victim of their crazed
scheme. “What happened to her? She..died?” She was almost afraid to ask.
Peata waved an
elegant hand. “Worse. The offspring did not live. Her blood was not strong
enough to carry Marsh’s seed through to term.”
Kiandra wanted to
ask more questions, but was forestalled by the fact that Peata now turned her
back to her and headed for the door. “I advise you take plenty of rest. I can
assure you, there’s a tough task ahead of you as we prepare you for your bridal
role. Our way.” She added that with a portentous look over her shoulder, before
exiting the room and locking the door carefully behind her.
