CRIMSON RUIN

The night stretched out slowly as the tick-tocks of the clock settled into a nauseating cadence,

How many ticks had she counted?

Was it three hundred or five hundred?

She didn't know,

However, what she knew was that she didn't get a wink of sleep that night after losing count of the ticks of the clock,

So she settled with drowning herself in the never-ending song of the timekeeper while playing a game of hide and seek with slumber,

The corset she wore was uncomfortably cinched and the silk material of the gown stuck to her sweat-drenched body,

And by the time the chandelier's lights flickered on, her body buzzed with a light and heavy sensation that left her feeling like a shell of herself.

Curly strands of dark hair blocked her vision when she struggled to open her eyes,

And she let out a frustrated groan when she noticed she couldn't even move it out of her face because her hands were still tied behind her back,

Crystal was alone,

No one had bothered to check up on her.

Slowly, she tried to raise her head up but a sharp jolt of pain stabbed her neck immediately, causing her to wince and gnash her teeth.

She bore an unreasonable amount of pain and looked around the room through blurry tear-filled eyes.

The vase of blood on the table broke the stillness as a vivid reminder of the hunger she was battling,

She forced herself to look away,

She could not fall,

Not now.

When she told the King to leave, she expected she'd get the relief that she craved.

But now, as she sat down, bound at the foot of her bed, the truth seemed to be quite the opposite.

She had never felt an emptier feeling than this in her life.

She had opposed him for almost the whole time they'd been together, and now the void that he had left was a plain fact.

He was the person she needed to ground her but she didn't know it at the time.

And now, it was too late.

Her eyes darted to the door when she heard a series of soft insistent knocks,

"Lady?"

"Lady, are you okay?"

"Are you awake yet?" The girl whispered as she slowly pushed the creaking door open and stepped in hesitantly,

"What do you want?" Crystal croaked out as her lips were pulled down into a taut frown at the appearance of the maid,

The girl's face didn't fail to express her discomfort as she began to fidget with her fingers.

Crystal soon recognized her from her anxious mannerisms as the first maid she had interacted with,

"I... brought something for you," the maid whispered as she looked down at the bowl in her hands with uncertainty.

Crystal said nothing in response, and just watched as the chambermaid put a small bowl of fruit on the table.

Her eyes quickly switched from the table to the ropes that were still on Crystal's wrists and they widened.

"You're still tied up?" She gasped in surprise,

Crystal stared at the woman's polished black shoes after she decided that the question was indeed stupid and not worth an answer.

The trembling of her hands intensified as she took a cautious step forward.

"I could help you... with that." She whispered in a soft, albeit shaky voice as she knelt down beside her,

Crystal nodded hesitantly, although she was not happy at how dependent she was.

But the maid's touch was gentle, and it drove Crystal to accept it.

"These are really tight" The maid muttered as her fingers moved carefully while she untied the ropes and clumsily fumbled with the knots.

The silence that descended on the room was heavy as Crystal waited for the moment she would be free,

And her prayers were answered when the last knot came loose,

At least, the gods heard this plea,

She let out a deep exhale and rolled her shoulders as the maid set the rope aside and gently touched Crystal's wrists,

She froze,

"I… I'm sorry-"

"It's fine, r-"

"I'm so sorry, I didn't mean to make you uncomfortable, I really am" She whispered as she pleaded profusely,

"I'm not going to eat you, calm down, I don't even like blood" she chuckled amusedly as she tugged on a lock of the girl's brown hair playfully,

"Oh…" She murmured as she visibly relaxed against the foot of the bed and let out the deep breath she had been holding,

"So… you're human?" Crystal started, a weak attempt to break the icy tension in the room,

"Uhm… yes. Yes, I am"

"Are there others like you here?" She inquired,

The woman nervously glanced at her and remained silent, as if thinking about whether it would be right to tell her,

"Crystal" Crystal mumbled,

"What?" The girl jumped at the impulsive suddenness of the information,

"What's Crystal?" She asked in a soft voice, ensuring to tread carefully,

"My name, It's Crystal" She replied,

"Really? I thought it was Eve" The maid smiled softly,

"No, It… It's not" She sighed through her nose,

"Do you want to talk about it?"

"I…" Crystal faltered,

She wasn't ready to open up, not yet,

"Well, I'm called Sarai" The woman shrugged with a smile that seemed to break down Crystal's scrawny defenses,

"Saint gave it to me" She sighed out, against her own wishes,

She just couldn't bear the brunt of the pain anymore, She had to,

No, she needed to talk to someone about it, since it was obvious that the gods weren't listening,

And if the only person available to listen was some maid in the castle of her sworn enemy,

Then so be it, she would talk to the maid,

"The King gave you a name?" She asked as her dark eyes twinkled like stars in a murky sky,

"Why, that's wonderful, or is it not?" She added when she saw that Crystal cocked up an eyebrow at her former reaction,

"How is that considered wonderful?" Crystal huffed as she folded her arms and pulled her lips down into a frown,

"I mean, the King named and turned you, did he not?"

"What does that have to do with anything?" She huffed as her brows furrowed,

"That means you're his pet, that's like the dream of every normal human" Sarai explained excitedly,

"So you'd let HIM turn you?" Crystal gasped with wide eyes, as though it was the most absurd thing she'd ever heard,

Because it was,

And she felt the sudden urge to smack the younger girl across the face and shake some sense and the fear of the gods into her,

"Why not? The life of a pet is pretty stress-free, The Lord will protect you, no weird council people or nobles breathing down your neck, annnnddd… if he really fancies you, you can have the finest things in the world"

"That's just disgusting and shameless" Crystal smiled as she shook her head at her like a mother,

"Come on, Crystal, it can't be THAT bad, he's the most sought after bachelor in the kingdom" She giggled as she wiggled her eyebrows cheekily,

"Silly" Crystal smiled as she burst into her first real laughter since the awful incident, "you're so silly" She grinned at the maid,

"How did it even happen, how did you steal the favor of our generous King" Sarai smiled as she played with the fledgling's dark curly hair with enthusiasm,

"You mean he stole me?" She mumbled as her eyes darkened,

"What- What are you talking about?" Sarai stuttered as her hands stilled in her hair,

"I was a warrior priestess of the go-"

The words were barely out of her mouth before Sarai had a hand over her mouth, sealing her lips shut with widened eyes,

"Shush!" The maid gasped as she slowly looked around as if searching for a dangerous presence that was not present,

"What?" Crystal mumbled fearfully at her reaction as she slowly removed the girl's hand that had shut her up earlier,

"The walls have ears, you can't go around saying that, they may put you and I to death; you, for proclaiming it and I, for being there to listen" Sarai whispered as she anxiously picked at the skin of her hands,

"Sorry, I didn't realize" She apologized as she was snapped back to the cold reality of Winchester castle.

Sarai sighed, "It… It's fine, just don't mention that out loud again, your kind have sharp hearing" she whispered,

"I'm aware, sorry, It's just… I'm not used to all this" Crystal mumbled as she motioned to the room before hugging her knees to her chest like a sad child,

"So, did he settle with the children of the gods? Were you an offering of peace? Is everyone alright? I mean… It's totally fine if you wish not to talk about it" She whispered slowly,

"Settle? Peace? What do you think this is? Some fairytale, forced proximity, enemies to lovers scroll?" Crystal scoffed with indignation.

"I… I mean… The King is a good negotiator, is he not?" The girl said as she stumbled over her words, suddenly feeling uncertain,

"He didn't even negotiate, he just massacred my people and burnt my temple to the ground, I'm the last one left... I mean... I was"

Sarai's eyes immediately bubbled and spilled over with tears that ran freely onto her cheeks,

"Wha- Sarai, what's wrong?" Crystal's eyes widened as the gloomy cloud lifted off her gaze,

"M-m-m… my"

"Your what? Sarai, are you fine?" Crystal panicked as she rushed to the girl's side as quickly as she could,

"My mother, I…" The girl whimpered just before she burst into a full blown sob,

Crystal dragged Sarai's left hand and pulled up her sleeve to reveal the golden sun birthmark that all children of the gods possessed.

Crystal let out an audible gasp before pulling Sarai into a snug embrace,

"Oh my gods, darling, I'm so sorry" she whispered as she patted her back gently,

Crystal didn't let go of her until she pulled away willingly, wiping her eyes with the back of her hand after she calmed down her breathing.

After this, they sat together in silence to count their losses as time flew by,

"What are you going to do now?" The maidservant whispered,

Just as soon as she asked, there was a sharp knock and the door swung open before she could respond to Sarai,

The man that entered was tall and as sharp as a drawn blade with green robes bearing delicate embroidery that seemed like protective runes.

He was wiry and almost skeletal, with a face that looked like it had been carved from cold marble.

His gaze swept the room once in unmistakable disdain at the bed in disarray and untouched food,

It also disregarded the maid beside her before settling on the priestess with a weight as heavy as a bag of bricks.

"Eve." His voice was crisp, clipped, every word measured. "I am Lord Edric. I oversee matters of the court."

She fought the grimace that ached to make its way to her face as she forced herself to sit up straight.

"And?" The man paused at her words as he noticed the color of the defiant gaze in her eyes, and his lips curled up maliciously,

"A human?" He scoffed arrogantly,

A sudden surge of rage did not fail to seize her at his words as her eyebrows furrowed and her blue eyes narrowed down on him,

"Do I look human to you?" She growled in a voice that made the man hesitantly step back as soon as he saw her eyes flash red for a second,

"An unstable one, ey?" He chuckled as he unrolled a parchment and read it to the females as if delivering a sentence.

"You will begin etiquette training today. Lessons are mandatory. There will be no discussion." He stated in a stern tone,

Sarai looked between the two vampires glowering at each-other as she played with the hem of her sleeve.

"No discussion" Edric emphasized as soon as Crystal's lips parted to argue,

"No discussions, I never even agreed to this?" She scoffed,

"Yes, no discussions or negotiations, Agreement is irrelevant."

She let out a short, bitter laugh as she shook her head at him mockingly.

"As long as you are here, you will do what you are told" He smiled wickedly as the wrinkles on his pale skin became more exaggerated and evident.

"I am not one of you, and I do not belong here" she snapped.

Her already brewing anger flared, as bright and volatile as flames licking up a sheet of paper.

His eyes flicked to the untouched goblet before settling on her face, unreadable.

"That may be. But as I have said before, you are here, and here, you will behave according to our laws."

"Saint's orders?" She grinned cruelly as the name caught in her throat like something sharp.

"Yes," Edric answered, voice steady. "And what the King decrees will be upheld, whether he is present or not."

Even gone, Saint's grip hadn't loosened on her life.

"I won't be controlled." She whispered,

Edric sighed as he folded the parchment with deliberate care.

"Do you think you are the first unwilling creature to stand in these halls?" He asked as he stepped closer, his voice dropping to something softer and dangerous.

"This is a kingdom built on power. You may resist for now. It will not last. You can choose dignity, or you can be dragged through the mud."

Crystal curled her hands into fists,

She knew the truth,

The castle was a cage, its rules locked as tight as a muzzle.

She had no powerful allies and no way out.

Fighting wouldn't gain her anything.

So she forced her expression into something blank and cool.

"Fine," she said with a smile that was graceful enough for a priestess.

"I'll play along."

For now.