2
"Oh, why did I even think I need a son to rule this country when my daughter is enough," The King laughed, "Go on, guard; listen to her. The Princess is now the second in command." Jza remained silent until she realized her father wasn't jesting. Soon she forgot about the man altogether and planned the strategy for the escape. The various nobles accumulated in the castle were already halfway through the tunnel. She organized a safer route through the castle for the staff and the injured soldiers.
"And what about the Princesses; they still aren't ready to move. They intend to take so much luggage through the tunnel that it shall be harder to move for the rest of the survivors," The guard implored.
"Leave them to me. Now, bring me ten of your finest and strongest men. We need to transport the King."
"Yes, yes, talk about me like I'm merely luggage," The King chortled once the guard left. Jza leaned down and kissed him on the cheek. The King held onto her hands his eyes filled to the brim with emotion.
"Promise me, Jza, that you will take care of yourself and your sisters, Promise me," The King spoke passionately.
"I promise, Father," Jza wanted to cry seeing her father so helpless.
A knock from outside informed them that their men were here. The men quickly entered the room and helped their King onto a wheelchair. She held onto her Father's hand.
"Be safe, Father," She bid him farewell not knowing if she was going to see him again. He smiled back at her and then he was gone. She stood alone in the room wondering how the castle would look without its inhabitants.
Jza walked out of the infirmary and she could see no one. The castle was a frightful place without the life the various nobles, servants and soldiers brought to it. Her footsteps echoed as she made her way up to her sisters' rooms. She looked around keeping an eye for some signs of Major Raymond but he seemed to have disbanded his station.
As she turned into a corner she heard voices. In a protective reaction she crouched low to inspect who the people were. Could it be that the enemy had already infiltrated the castle? To her relief it was Major Raymond but the other man walking beside him was unfamiliar.
"And you say that the castle has been evacuated," The unknown man spoke with a clipped accent.
"Yes, unfortunately; although I know for a fact the Princesses never went through the tunnel," Raymond replied with a twisted smile on his face.
"You mean to tell me the twelve famous beauties are still in this castle. Did their father mean to appease us by offering his daughters?" The unknown man murmured in a slimy fashion.
"I doubt it; the old coot always has a card up his sleeve and he didn't bother to inform me of his latest games," Raymond scowled, "Do you wish to check on the Princesses in their rooms."
"I believe Lord Tarquin shall arrive in a few minutes. Once he is suitably settled we can continue the search for the lost Princesses. It would be a delight to find such diamonds amongst the loot."
Jza gaped at the retreating back of the two men. Never in her wildest dreams did she imagine Raymond would turn out to be a traitor. She bounced back up quickly from her hiding place and, forgetting all that was proper for a Princess like her, raced towards the second floor where her sisters resided.
As soon as she opened the doors to their rooms she was instantly mobbed by her sisters and completely inundated with questions.
"What is going on?" "Why do you look more terrible than usual?" "I can't find my hair brush."
"Quiet, all of you; there is no time for questions. I need you to follow orders just this once."
"Who are you to order us around like this?" The eldest halfsister asked enraged, her feathery hair for once in her life in complete disarray.
"Our father left me as the second in command and that gives me complete command of this castle. I shall ask you to honour his wishes for once," Jza paused as she slid her hand through her brown windswept hair, "The enemy has destroyed the castle's defenses and they roam around freely as we speak," Jza paused again, unable to continue due to the violence of her sisters' cries of panic. Jza breathed in again and opened the locket her father had given her. It did indeed contain the key to the portal; literally.
The key was solid gold with intricate swirls all over it. She looked at it and cursed silently as she tried to figure out how to use it. Her sharp eyes caught an inscription camouflaged in the swirls. Her eyes widened as she realized they were instructions.
She read them again and decided they seemed credible. Her sisters were as yet completely oblivious to what Jza was doing as they circled around grabbing their most precious belongings and screaming hysterically. Jza would have laughed at the pandemonium if the situation wasn't so dire. She didn't know when the enemy soldiers could break the doors and barge in.
Jza waved the key in an anti clockwise motion and exhaled softly the ancient words of a language long forgotten; wishing with all her might that the promised door would appear in front of her.
When she opened her eyes there was indeed an actual wooden door standing in the middle of the room. Her sister's gasped in unison at the luminous light around it. The key slid in without hindrance and the gold lock opened smoothly. Brilliant light streamed out from the doorway as she opened it. Jza tried to peer in but she could only see the mysterious light.
"Father built this portal for us so we can get to safety in times like these," Jza tried to explain once she turned around.
"Does it lead to somewhere safe?" One of the girls piped.
"Father says so; I think we should trust his judgement. There isn't any time to squabble over this so move with haste, sisters. The enemy could be at the door as we speak."
Worried about being captured by the enemy the sisters made their choice of going in to the portal. One by one the sisters climbed through the doorway into the light. They clutched onto each other's shoulders trying to look like they weren't scared but they failed miserably. Gabrielle the second youngest of her half sisters was the last to approach the doorway. She turned around to look at Jza who was standing by the window watching the gruesome battlefield outside. The fires were still burning but there was an unnatural quietness in the atmosphere. It seemed the enemy had finally won.
"What's going to happen to us in there?" The sister asked pensively.
Jza turned around and approached Gabrielle who was beginning to look hazy in the gentle light filtering through her hair. "I don't know," Jza muttered. She took the blonde's hand in her own and squeezed it in farewell. Gabrielle's eyes widened as she realized what was going to happen.
"You aren't going with us," She gasped with her hands covering her face.
Jza shook her head and slammed the door shut. Once she locked the door it vanished on its own. "I can't." She placed the key back in her locket and slid the chain down her long brown hair until it rested on her chest.
Jza slid to the floor feeling incredibly drained. She trembled at the thought of the great responsibility on her shoulders. How could she protect her sisters if she ever got captured? What if she wavered from her duty? She could never face her father again if something happened to them. She didn't even want to live if her efforts ended in failure.
Jza knew there was a chance she could remain hidden in the castle. It was large and as convoluted as a labyrinth and she was well acquainted with it but she could not underestimate Lord Tarquin. What if they captured her and managed to torture the information out of her. Jza wasn't afraid of persecution; she was more worried about faltering while facing adversity.
Jza eyed the knife on the fruit basket laid out in the centre of one side table but dispelled the notion of suicide. Her death would mean her sisters would be lost forever. She did get up to pull the knife out of a red apple but it was meant for her protection and not to kill herself.
A sudden memory hit her at that moment and she remembered what her father said about being bonded to vows. Jza paced as she tried to recall bits of information she had learnt over the years. She knew the bonded could never go against the promise they made but was it because they couldn't physically or because they feared to face unknown grievous repercussions. Jza could not remember any facts that pointed to any such reason.
Jza closed her eyes. In a moment of surprising clarity her decision was made and very familiar words sprouted from her mouth. "I promise thee, as I have promised heaven above that I shall fulfill my duty as thou has prescribed till I lay at the altar of death. I shall keep my sisters safe at all costs. Give me strength."
Even with her eyes closed she could sense the light erupting in the room.
It was at that moment the sound of many footsteps entering the room next to hers reached Jza. The enemy soldiers had finally arrived and Jza instantly crouched down behind one of the sofas cursing herself for staying behind in the Princesses' quarters after knowing full well this was the first place the enemy was to search.
The sofa she was behind was pressed against the wall so she was cushioned from all sides. She heard loud grunts and sounds of things breaking as the men searched the room. One man came close enough but he chose kick the sofa towards the wall. One protruding piece of wood hidden in the upholstery hit her on the forehead but she held back the cry of pain.
Holding her head Jza patiently waited for the activity to die down. Once she could not sense any presence in the room she slipped out from her hiding place. The living room was darker due to the time but she knew the room well enough to navigate with little light. She nearly toppled over a fallen vase but managed to reach the central narrow corridor towards which the entire Princess' rooms open to. Her hand had only just reached the handle of the main door that would lead out to the rest of the castle when she was violently pulled backwards by a strong hand gripping her own.
The other hand slid over her mouth forcefully before she could make a sound and the assailant used his body weight to press her against a wall. She tried to break free but he was too strong for her. Finally, she stopped struggling, realizing that the fight was utterly futile. As her vision focused she realized she was staring into the amber eyes of a man just inches away from her.
