PROLOGUE
Lights. Magnificent buildings. The city of Geuinia, the promised land free of persecution. What a joke. I was seven when we first moved Geuinia, and I remember the grandeur of that day like no other. Papa was sleeping opposite me in the carriage as I poked my small head out the window in hopes of gathering a glimpse of the beautiful city. It was early morning and the sky had a tint of violet to it-a sign of a blessed day and hopefully a new beginning. I kissed my amethyst pendant given to me by my late mother on my birthday. Papa says all loved ones go to a paradise better than Earth, and that we all eventually meet there and live happily for eternity. That too is a joke, but at the pure age of seven, there isn't much you don't believe in. My thoughts were soon forgotten as the carriage rolled to a stop. I giggled and shrieked, waking up Papa in a hurry as we caught sight of the tall buildings and beautiful dresses. The sight of fortune. That moment, my breath got caught in my throat and the image was forever engrossed in my mind.
In the years after, we settled and Papa started his own shop-Esmerelda, named after Mama. It sold simple, cheap jewelry and other toys and games. It was my simple happiness. From school, I would come home and play with the toys and other crafts Papa always had. But my favorite was this small doll. She was ever so pretty with dark hair similar to mine, but her eyes were the color of the ocean. Because I liked it so much, Papa gave it to me and I carried it around everywhere. But happiness is never meant to last.
When I was ten, the governor's daughter, Priscilla Dupont, ran away from home and found her way to Papa's store. In our innocence, neither Papa nor I knew who she was, only thinking she was an orphan. So we let her stay for two, maybe three days. I never had a friend, but she became my first. However, the governor sent a search party for Priscilla. When Papa found out, he immediately went to talk to the governor. Since Papa was poor, his words were dismissed and he was taken for a kidnapper. His execution was the morning following his capture. Priscilla and I both cried and screamed for the men to let him go, but our efforts were futile. Priscilla was taken away and Papa was beheaded in front of our neighbors and friends. That day, another image was embedded in my mind-the image of Papa's dismembered head rolling on the ground, a pool of blood oozing from his body. I thought they would surely kill me next, but Priscilla had managed to persuade them otherwise.
That day, I learned I no longer had a place to go, my simple happiness was taken away. I became a child of few words, often wandering around the city for any food I could find. Friends and neighbors, once people I relied upon, refused to acknowledge my presence for they did not want to be associated with a 'kidnapper.' My days from then on continued in the same manner. But happiness does not abandon you.
When I turned twenty-one, I found what you stupid humans call love. Pathetic. Liam was the son of the local baker. Still an orphaned child, as they called it, I was always rummaging through their trash bins for any food scraps. One evening while I was diving through the garbage, he happened to see me. I suppose his father wasn't there, so he threw me a loaf of bread. I threw it back; not because I was not hungry, but because I was too embarrassed. He was what Priscilla would have labeled as good merchandise. He had scraggly red hair and a button nose that most people lost as a child. But it was his eyes that attracted me-they were a deep blue. I often overheard the young women refer to them as the ocean. But I had never been to the ocean, and did not know what it was. But I knew his eyes were beautiful. And when I threw the loaf of bread back, his eyes were glaring in all their glory. He did not speak to me in the following weeks, but I always went to their trash bins just so I could see him from the window. Eventually, after scrounging for months, I had enough money to buy my own small loaf of bread. So I walked into the bakery with my head held high.
He saw me, but he did not say much. Instead, he looked away and continued taking the loaves down from the shelves. Oh, the arrogance. But I ignored it, like all foolish women in love. I placed the coins on the counter and shyly asked for a loaf. He refused, saying that they were a day old, but I persisted. He finally gave me one, which I shoved down my throat, trying to savor the taste. It was the best food I had tasted in awhile. I do believe I had cried from the taste. When I finished, I noticed that he was looking at me, laughter evident in his eyes. It was from that moment that we became fond of the other. We laughed, and walked together, I was even mocked by those hideous women whose dresses were so tight, making their bosom look oxygen deprived.
In the following year, he proposed and gave me a simple, inexpensive ring. But I was happy, or as happy as one can be. We moved in together and I began to help in the bakery. But happiness is ever meant to last. Priscilla soon fell ill with the plague and the governor became frantic. He still did not have an heir, regardless of the fact that his daughter was dying in front of his eyes. In desperation, he searched among all the villagers for an eligible bachelor to seed Priscilla's child. And as fate would have it, Liam was chosen. He was 'given' three days to make a decision, but he had to obey the governor's word, regardless of what he wanted. The night before he was sent to the mansion, he held me and whispered words of love and nothing less. Our passion was made evident as the blood of my virginity stained our sheets, our proof of love.
We left for the mansion the next morning. A room was prepared for Priscilla and Liam and the royal family and I waited outside. It was silent. I had closed my eyes in hopes of speeding our leave up. But within minutes, Liam emerged from the room, saying the deed was done. He looked to me and smiled a loving smile. I grinned back. But our worries were far from over. I was then led into the room. At the moment, I thought it was to say my goodbyes to an old friend. But when I entered, I saw the royal surgeon and the governor. Drugged, I fainted. An hour later, I awoke to a dead Priscilla and the surgeon looking over my face. I was told that since Priscilla did not have time to live, her fertile egg was placed in my womb, and I was to carry her child. How greedy was the human race...
Tired, I immediately left, only to come across Liam-sliced on the floor, blood gushing from a large wound down his back. He was killed in order to keep the secret of the true heir. The governor disposed of his body so that Liam would not ever go to governor's mansion, asking for more than was promised. I screamed. I was returned to the bakery, where I had to tell Liam's father of the tragedy. The following morning, he hung himself in the basement of the bakery. With rumours of a cursed family, the bakery was immediately closed and never opened again.
In the following days, I had come to learn that once the baby had been born, the governor would dispose of me as well. Thinking of my late father and Liam, an evil being within me and risen. By midnight the following day, the governor's body was going to be dismembered and placed in front of the mansion for all to see.
When the next morning came, I woke up and cleaned what needed to be cleaned. By mid-afternoon, I took a stroll to the graveyard and placed flower's on Papa's and Liam's graves. It was going to be goodbye after tonight. If I valued my life, I was not to return to the city of Geuinia. I knelt down, feeling the grit of the gravel dirty my dress. I cried, letting the warm wetness envelop my heart as I parted from my loved ones. By the time I left the graveyard, it was late at night. And I made my way to the governor's mansion, knife in hand.
Humans are not only pathetic, but weak as well. I did not expect to walk into the governor's mansion guard-free, but I expected them to be more built than they were. Five guards were knocked down, their necks dismembered from their bodies. I could have spared them, but I was not in a giving mood. With those men out of my way, I calmly walked to the governor's chambers. The fat lummox was already asleep. I waited at the foot of the bed, angling my head to determine how I would kill the man. When he felt my presence, he awoke in a startle. The lump of fear still caught in his throat as he moved back. He tried to scream for help, but the fat, glutton he was found it hard to sum up any courage to yell for help. And so, we began.
The deed done, I placed his body on the steps to the mansion and his head on a pike. I smiled at the thought of some poor maid on her way to work, stumbling on a limb, or seeing the head four inches away from hers. A scream would alert the household and mourning would occur for days. But that thought did not rest long. I remembered. I remembered the feeling of pure thrill and fear as I gutted his esophagus from his throat, hearing the last ounce of oxygen leaving his mortal being. The blood trickled down my fingers. Warm, it set my heart ablaze with something undefined-a certain dark passion. In that moment, I was alive. I inhaled the cold metallic fragrance, and smiled warmly at the mutilated body. Chills ran through my spine, the adrenaline of the hunt still coursing through me. I got what I wanted-a life for a life, that was the code.
But now, I am a runaway. The cold air began to bite at my skin. I coughed. Touching my stomach, I sigh and touch my stomach, feeling the beating life. Precious and vulnerable, she will begin a new generation. But one day, a child destined for greatness will be born. And that is when I will return, to rid the world of the greed and malice of the human race.
Eyes, plagued with amethyst, will carry out this prophecy, freeing us all. Oh God, let this legend be born.
Lights. Magnificent buildings. The city of Geuinia, the promised land free of persecution. What a joke. I was seven when we first moved Geuinia, and I remember the grandeur of that day like no other. Papa was sleeping opposite me in the carriage as I poked my small head out the window in hopes of gathering a glimpse of the beautiful city. It was early morning and the sky had a tint of violet to it-a sign of a blessed day and hopefully a new beginning. I kissed my amethyst pendant given to me by my late mother on my birthday. Papa says all loved ones go to a paradise better than Earth, and that we all eventually meet there and live happily for eternity. That too is a joke, but at the pure age of seven, there isn't much you don't believe in. My thoughts were soon forgotten as the carriage rolled to a stop. I giggled and shrieked, waking up Papa in a hurry as we caught sight of the tall buildings and beautiful dresses. The sight of fortune. That moment, my breath got caught in my throat and the image was forever engrossed in my mind.
In the years after, we settled and Papa started his own shop-Esmerelda, named after Mama. It sold simple, cheap jewelry and other toys and games. It was my simple happiness. From school, I would come home and play with the toys and other crafts Papa always had. But my favorite was this small doll. She was ever so pretty with dark hair similar to mine, but her eyes were the color of the ocean. Because I liked it so much, Papa gave it to me and I carried it around everywhere. But happiness is never meant to last.
When I was ten, the governor's daughter, Priscilla Dupont, ran away from home and found her way to Papa's store. In our innocence, neither Papa nor I knew who she was, only thinking she was an orphan. So we let her stay for two, maybe three days. I never had a friend, but she became my first. However, the governor sent a search party for Priscilla. When Papa found out, he immediately went to talk to the governor. Since Papa was poor, his words were dismissed and he was taken for a kidnapper. His execution was the morning following his capture. Priscilla and I both cried and screamed for the men to let him go, but our efforts were futile. Priscilla was taken away and Papa was beheaded in front of our neighbors and friends. That day, another image was embedded in my mind-the image of Papa's dismembered head rolling on the ground, a pool of blood oozing from his body. I thought they would surely kill me next, but Priscilla had managed to persuade them otherwise.
That day, I learned I no longer had a place to go, my simple happiness was taken away. I became a child of few words, often wandering around the city for any food I could find. Friends and neighbors, once people I relied upon, refused to acknowledge my presence for they did not want to be associated with a 'kidnapper.' My days from then on continued in the same manner. But happiness does not abandon you.
When I turned twenty-one, I found what you stupid humans call love. Pathetic. Liam was the son of the local baker. Still an orphaned child, as they called it, I was always rummaging through their trash bins for any food scraps. One evening while I was diving through the garbage, he happened to see me. I suppose his father wasn't there, so he threw me a loaf of bread. I threw it back; not because I was not hungry, but because I was too embarrassed. He was what Priscilla would have labeled as good merchandise. He had scraggly red hair and a button nose that most people lost as a child. But it was his eyes that attracted me-they were a deep blue. I often overheard the young women refer to them as the ocean. But I had never been to the ocean, and did not know what it was. But I knew his eyes were beautiful. And when I threw the loaf of bread back, his eyes were glaring in all their glory. He did not speak to me in the following weeks, but I always went to their trash bins just so I could see him from the window. Eventually, after scrounging for months, I had enough money to buy my own small loaf of bread. So I walked into the bakery with my head held high.
He saw me, but he did not say much. Instead, he looked away and continued taking the loaves down from the shelves. Oh, the arrogance. But I ignored it, like all foolish women in love. I placed the coins on the counter and shyly asked for a loaf. He refused, saying that they were a day old, but I persisted. He finally gave me one, which I shoved down my throat, trying to savor the taste. It was the best food I had tasted in awhile. I do believe I had cried from the taste. When I finished, I noticed that he was looking at me, laughter evident in his eyes. It was from that moment that we became fond of the other. We laughed, and walked together, I was even mocked by those hideous women whose dresses were so tight, making their bosom look oxygen deprived.
In the following year, he proposed and gave me a simple, inexpensive ring. But I was happy, or as happy as one can be. We moved in together and I began to help in the bakery. But happiness is ever meant to last. Priscilla soon fell ill with the plague and the governor became frantic. He still did not have an heir, regardless of the fact that his daughter was dying in front of his eyes. In desperation, he searched among all the villagers for an eligible bachelor to seed Priscilla's child. And as fate would have it, Liam was chosen. He was 'given' three days to make a decision, but he had to obey the governor's word, regardless of what he wanted. The night before he was sent to the mansion, he held me and whispered words of love and nothing less. Our passion was made evident as the blood of my virginity stained our sheets, our proof of love.
We left for the mansion the next morning. A room was prepared for Priscilla and Liam and the royal family and I waited outside. It was silent. I had closed my eyes in hopes of speeding our leave up. But within minutes, Liam emerged from the room, saying the deed was done. He looked to me and smiled a loving smile. I grinned back. But our worries were far from over. I was then led into the room. At the moment, I thought it was to say my goodbyes to an old friend. But when I entered, I saw the royal surgeon and the governor. Drugged, I fainted. An hour later, I awoke to a dead Priscilla and the surgeon looking over my face. I was told that since Priscilla did not have time to live, her fertile egg was placed in my womb, and I was to carry her child. How greedy was the human race...
Tired, I immediately left, only to come across Liam-sliced on the floor, blood gushing from a large wound down his back. He was killed in order to keep the secret of the true heir. The governor disposed of his body so that Liam would not ever go to governor's mansion, asking for more than was promised. I screamed. I was returned to the bakery, where I had to tell Liam's father of the tragedy. The following morning, he hung himself in the basement of the bakery. With rumours of a cursed family, the bakery was immediately closed and never opened again.
In the following days, I had come to learn that once the baby had been born, the governor would dispose of me as well. Thinking of my late father and Liam, an evil being within me and risen. By midnight the following day, the governor's body was going to be dismembered and placed in front of the mansion for all to see.
When the next morning came, I woke up and cleaned what needed to be cleaned. By mid-afternoon, I took a stroll to the graveyard and placed flower's on Papa's and Liam's graves. It was going to be goodbye after tonight. If I valued my life, I was not to return to the city of Geuinia. I knelt down, feeling the grit of the gravel dirty my dress. I cried, letting the warm wetness envelop my heart as I parted from my loved ones. By the time I left the graveyard, it was late at night. And I made my way to the governor's mansion, knife in hand.
Humans are not only pathetic, but weak as well. I did not expect to walk into the governor's mansion guard-free, but I expected them to be more built than they were. Five guards were knocked down, their necks dismembered from their bodies. I could have spared them, but I was not in a giving mood. With those men out of my way, I calmly walked to the governor's chambers. The fat lummox was already asleep. I waited at the foot of the bed, angling my head to determine how I would kill the man. When he felt my presence, he awoke in a startle. The lump of fear still caught in his throat as he moved back. He tried to scream for help, but the fat, glutton he was found it hard to sum up any courage to yell for help. And so, we began.
The deed done, I placed his body on the steps to the mansion and his head on a pike. I smiled at the thought of some poor maid on her way to work, stumbling on a limb, or seeing the head four inches away from hers. A scream would alert the household and mourning would occur for days. But that thought did not rest long. I remembered. I remembered the feeling of pure thrill and fear as I gutted his esophagus from his throat, hearing the last ounce of oxygen leaving his mortal being. The blood trickled down my fingers. Warm, it set my heart ablaze with something undefined-a certain dark passion. In that moment, I was alive. I inhaled the cold metallic fragrance, and smiled warmly at the mutilated body. Chills ran through my spine, the adrenaline of the hunt still coursing through me. I got what I wanted-a life for a life, that was the code.
But now, I am a runaway. The cold air began to bite at my skin. I coughed. Touching my stomach, I sigh and touch my stomach, feeling the beating life. Precious and vulnerable, she will begin a new generation. But one day, a child destined for greatness will be born. And that is when I will return, to rid the world of the greed and malice of the human race.
Eyes, plagued with amethyst, will carry out this prophecy, freeing us all. Oh God, let this legend be born.
