The dark metal carriage continued along the hard sand covered roads at an alarming pace. Aardriyah was sure that at any moment the whole thing would flip on its side sending her off the cliffs to the ice-cold water below. She tried to keep a track of all the turns they had made, but she realised it was futile as the journey seemed to last much longer than her memory did. When the carriage finally came to a halt, the overcast night sky luminated little of the surroundings, giving Aardriyah no further hints as to where she had been taken. The guards wordlessly opened the carriage door, hauled her out by the rope around her wrists and pushed her down a path towards a large dark mountain. In her peripheral, she was able to see that the road curved back on itself indicating they must be at one end of the island.
The path led to a small cave opening in the side of the mountain, lit only by a splattering of candles well burnt down and placed on the sides of the cave floor. The space was tight, allowing only a single file line, two guards leading, two behind and one remained at the entrance of the cave. None of them spoke a single word the entire time yet led her through the cave complex, as if they had done this a thousand times, without falter. Aardriyah was now visibly shaking, goose bumps had reach across her entire body and she was sure that if she wasn't being led to her imminent death, the cold alone would ensure she didn't make it through the night.
The guards in front suddenly stopped, causing Aardriyah to accidentally bump into one, not realising they must have reached their destination. She could hear the distinct noise of large keys on a chain, before the sound of a heavy door scraping along the floor echoed throughout the cave. The guard directly in front of her walked forward into the room, while the one who had just opened the door remained standing in the pathway, blocking anyone from moving past this point. He gazed directly forward through Aardriyah, not seeming to pay any attention to the prisoner before him. Aardriyah reached the door frame and paused in her track, refusing to go any further.
"No, no, no, no, no, NO! NO! NO! NO!" She began wailing as the guards behind her pushed her into the awaiting chamber, forcing her onto her knees.
"Why me?! What did I do?!" She begged, pleading for answers as the guards now retreated one at a time out of the room. She tried to follow, running and throwing herself at the last guard. He turned, pushed her back onto the ground and continued out of the cell. The door slammed behind the last guard and without a single word, she heard the heavy boots echo off into the night, leaving her alone in the cold, damp chamber of a room. Aardriyah began crying uncontrollably, looking down at her rope bindings, looking for any signs of weakness in the knot. She wondered if this was the end, if the last days she spent on the earth were to be spent languishing in solitude.
After what felt like hours, Aardriyah stopped crying long enough to catch her breath and realised her eyes had finally adjusted to the almost pitch-black surroundings. She rose slowly, still unsure of exactly what danger lay ahead or around her. A cool Moons Exhalation breeze kissed with a tinge of saltwater hit her face and sent shivers down her spine. She tried to gain her bearings, as she slowly rose off the ground. Her legs almost gave out underneath her as they too tried to adjust. As if sensing her movement, the heavy clouds that had blocked the moon, began to pull away. With a growing amount of light generated by the full moon, Aardriyah was able to take note of the cell she was now held captive in and the gaping wall missing from it. After spending her whole life on a cliff ridden island, she was no longer afraid of heights and found herself peering over the ledge down into the sharp rocks of black midnight below. The water was calming and gave her some solace as it curled back on itself, the silver white tips of waves reminding her of Sonas' long beautiful hair. She let out a small tear as she wondered if she'd ever get a chance to brush it again, to twist it into exquisite creations and see the beaming smile of the little girl who bore it.
YOU ARE READING
The Unblessed Child
FantasyThere are two types of people in The New Realm: those who are blessed by the gods of the four elements and those who aren't even worthy of their family name. They are unwanted, unloved and are simply known as The Unblessed. Eighteen year old Aardriy...
