Returning to my room, I promptly collapse on the bed and try to collect my bearings with bursting out in tears.
But forget tears. I'm over that by now. The main thing is to put on my "big girl" pants and keep up the act or charades or whatever deadly game I'm playing with Xalale.
"Just go to your happy place Mal. Just go there and stay there."
Sitting up I let out a tired sigh and yank out the black rose still in my hair. It snags a little due to the thorns on the stem (yeah, I knew I would regret this), but it eventually comes out.
"I have never hated a rose more in my life" Throwing the flower to the floor I resume my prone position, until a sudden though hits me.
"I'm alone! For the first time since being here, I'm alone."
There's no designated place for me to be, nobody helping me get ready for anything or anyone, nothing. This is my chance. I can finally scope out the place and help myself get an advantage. Not wanting this moment to pass me up, I jump off the bed and head out into empty hallway.
Cautiously, I venture out in the dimly lit halls, deathly quiet as I wander. There's not a soul in sight, but I don't want to take any risk, so I crept about like a burglary hiding in the many shadows of the halls.
With all these dreadful halls looking similar to one another I don't know how I managed to get to the flight of stairs. The stairs lead me to yet another labyrinth of dark hallways. I make sure to keep mental notes of the each hallway I enter and where it leads in hope of finding some miraculous exit. But it's a little confusing- not to mention infuriating- when every hall looks the exact same as the one you just came down. What am I suppose to take note of!?
Well this hallway seems to be a bit more chilly than the last one. Oh! And this hall is much more eerie than the previous one before.
It's a bit tedious.
When I'm about to give up and try to find my way back to the bedroom, something familiar appears. The sound of bloodcurdling screams.
My heart thunders in my chest as I freeze in place.
"Finally! I know where I am."
But do I want to go down there? I heard what it was like and felt how dirty it was. As I'm about to turn and head the other way my mind travels back to that little girl with the swollen eye in the cell next to mine. "Whatever happened to her?" The overly helpful part of me decides to kick in and I become concerned enough to turn back around and head down the spiral stairs into the damp dungeon.
Rushing to the cell where I was held I look around for any sign of the girl, but come up empty. I try calling out, but get nothing response but the screams of terrified individuals. Those screams don't make me want to go any further into the dungeon in search of the girl, in case they moved her. But fortunately (or unfortunately) two guards appear before me. They both greet me with hostile grimaces.
"What are you doing down here?" One of them snarls. He has gaps were teeth should be and has mouthful of rotting, black ones.
"Uh. I-I."
I barely get my words out before the second guard cuts in.
"You're dressed much too pretty to be an escapee."
"I'm not an escapee. I'm looking for a little girl with a swollen eye. Do you know where she is?"
The two men exchange a glance before the one with the rotting teeth answers me.
"You don't have the authority to request or ask anything of us."
I take a step back as they approach me.
"Well, look at that, it's time to go."
"Uh...well it seems you gentlemen don't have the information I was looking for. I'll get going now..." I knew this was a stupid idea. For all I know I could've been hallucinating the girl out of fear.
I don't get far before the man grabs me by the arm and pulls me closer. The hostile grimaces on their faces on now replaced by wicked smiles.
"Do you know why this prisoners scream, girly?"
I try not to sniff in the dying stench of the man's breath.
"Uh. I-I have to get going now-" I attempt to pull away from the man's grip, but to no prevail.
"Oh you can stay for one little story." The second guard says deviously.
"Yeah. Besides it's a real kneeslapper."
A cold sweat runs down my back as I realize that I've trapped myself in my own mistake- again.
"Well." The second man starts."First these prisoners are brought in and they listen to the screams. If they act all chivalrous and brave, we show 'em what happened to the other bastards who came in here actin' all tough. Then if that's not enough to break 'em, we give 'em a taste of what's in store."
Rotting teeth cuts in. "Oh and we have plenty in store for them. Or at least the king does. He lives for stuff like this. Just hearing people in complete terror gives him satisfaction."
"I'm sure it does," I know it does. "But the king might be worrying where I am and- and I don't want to keep him waiting-"
"Oh! You're here as the king's guest?"
I'm not positive I want to keep this conversation going but I decide to answer anyway.
"Yes, I am here as the king's guest." I say this with some authority like it might give me some leverage.
Instead, the two men give each other another wicked exchange before giving me a twisted smile and pulling me closer.
"Oh. I didn't think the king would have a taste for blondes."
Rotting teeth presses me against him- to which I have to hold my nose- and he speaks into my ear, but loud enough for his partner to hear him.
"Bet you keep him warm at night."
Faster than I've ever turned around in my life, I break free of the man's grip and slap him in repulse.
"How dare you!" There were other questionable responses I had in mind and on the tip of my tongue, but they simply wouldn't form, out of complete rage.
But my rage dissipated faster than it arrived once I look at the expressions plastered across the men's faces.
"Little bitch you are, huh?"
Rotting teeth shoves me against the stone wall with enough force to knock the wind out of me. Fear begins to pulse through my mind and system. I have to fight back.
But there's not time and I'm out numbered.
The second man takes a fist to my gut before rotting teeth places both hands around my neck.
"I'm sure the king won't miss you at all. There are plenty of bitches, like yourself, who'll spread their legs for a couple of coins."
"Well maybe I just prefer her."
Air returns to my burning lungs as the man releases his grip. I haven't fully collected myself yet, but I can hear the men's venomous tones switch to absolute terror.
"Your- your Ma- Majesty-"
I can feel someone helping me off the ground. Relief floods through me chasing away the fear that submerged only seconds ago.
"Let me ask you a question. Do you think of me as a very sentimental man?"
I could tell Xalale directed the question to rotting teeth. But he was quite reluctant to reply.
"Uh- well. I-I. You don't appear to- to be." He was stumbling over his own words.
"I cannot understand you when you stuttered. Speak cleary." Xalale still has an calm tone. Not even a trace of anger.
"No, your Majesty."
"Well when I do become sentimental, I like to keep my things in proper order. And to keep them that way I don't allow people to touch them."
The guards coward as Xalale approaches them.
"So why then are the two of you touching her?"
The both of them are at least smart enough to notice a rhetorical question and not answer it.
For a second, only the tortured screams of the prisoners fill the hall. The two men who were just a minute ago standing above me intimidating me, now are cowered against the wall silently pleading for mercy.
Unfortunately for them, mercy is not Xalale's nature.
I expect a sword or arrow to go through the guards, but nothing flies through the air nor is there any striking sound of an object being struck at someone.
Xalale simply clench his fist which results in the second guard gasping like he's being choked by a python.
I never thought I'd one day understand the true meaning of seeing the life choked out of someone. Hearing the bones crack one by one, watching as the eyes pop out from their sockets, listening to the muted cries of agony emitting from the doomed victim. But just before all life leaves, his body is released and crumbles to the floor like a rag doll.
Rotting teeth stands there frozen in place staring at his disfigured partner dying on the floor. Xalale doesn't spare him any pain.
Blood begins to ooze from rotting teeth's mouth as he starts to sputter out his own blood. It takes me a moment to realize that his tongue has been cut from his mouth, resulting in the waterfall of blood. Unfortunately for rotting teeth, he has no time to figure this out before his eyes are gorged out and rolling out onto the floor.
The man's screams block out even the prisoners' cries of pain and terror. With ice running through my veins, I have no time to move or cover my eyes or even let out the smallest gasp of surprise.
Rotting teeth's agony only has to go on for a few more seconds before Xalale snaps his neck. The body falls to the ground right besides his partner's flinching body. Xalale breaks his neck as well by crushing it underfoot. The muffled cries are silenced and the screams of the prisoners take over and engulf us again.
I can still hear the screaming of the men ring loud and clear. So clear that I have to cover my ears with my hands to try to somehow block out the tortured noise.
Reality sets back in as I feel Xalale's hands rest on my shoulders. Breaking free from his touch I quickly back away. Forget the dead bodies on the floor. What the hell was that!?
"Are you alright?" He starts to approach me again but I pull back.
"What- how? How could you could that without touching them?"
I was pissed, terrified, and defensive all at the same time. Not the best emotions to have at this point.
"That was nothing. Now are you hurt or-"
"Nothing!"
He was more insane than I thought him to originally be if he thought that was nothing.
"Yes, it was nothing, now I would prefer if you didn't bring up that issue."
It was subtle but it brought me completely back to reality. Just the smallest hint of anger laced his tone which reminded me of my current dilemma. I settled down.
"I'm fine, thank you."
"What were you doing down here?"
"Uh..." Yeah, cute story. I knew I blew it. "I was just exploring the castle and wanted to check something."
"Check what?" His icy blue eyes could burn a hole through mine so I advert my graze.
"I wanted to see if a little girl I met was still down here."
"Hm...well she's probably dead by now."
The nonchalant way he said it made me turn my attention back in his direction. He doesn't noticed my shock and instead guides me up the staircase out of the dungeon.
"Mallory, it would put my mind at ease to know where you are. You should stay by my side for the time being."
"Yup. I blew it. This was my only chance to wander around alone."
"I don't know. I'm kind of more of the loner type, so I like do my own thing..."
"We'll return back to the throne room."
He was surprisingly good at putting words in my mouth. Or more like telling me what my response should be.
On the way, I contemplate on whether I should properly thank him or not. I mean he did just save my life quite possibly. But on the other hand, I don't want to appear like I'm going soft. So my stubborn side kicks in and I don't say a word to him as we make our to the throne room.
Once in the throne room, I'm again forced to stand there and study the ceiling. Like an impatient child, I make sure to verbalize my displeasure at being here by letting out the most disgruntled sighs I can muster. Finally after about ten minutes of this I decide to take a risk.
"I have to excuse myself."
Looking up from from papers he was examining, he ask. "Excuse yourself for what?"
"Use the bathroom." A classic fib sure to work.
"Fine. Afterwards, return to your room until diner."
I bite back the comment that is burning on tip of my tongue. Nodding, I hurry down the halls not fully knowing where I'm headed, but not fully caring, until I reach a quiet, dusty room.
I decide to hide out here until diner time arrives (whenever the hell it is).
"This is getting too advanced. Or complex, or whatever it's getting. I need to get out of here and find a way to get back home-"
Bumping up against a tower of empty wooden boxes a thin layer of dust falls on me. Something else falls over as well. Stooping down to pick up a small, blue velvet box, I open the lid to reveal a silver ring with a blue jewel in the middle. The ring was gorgeous and not at all dusty like its container or the room. Lifting the ring up to the sliver of light breaching through the window, I study it in awe, but examine it more closely. The ring was flawless apart from one major factor.
The ring was turning to stone.