Page 4 of Crowned A Traitor
"Heiress," the weasel snarled, its yellow eyes staring up at her. The weasel wasn't just a Shifter. The yellow eyes told her of its Demonic nature—one of the High Queen's scouts. Klara felt a lump in her throat, either the Queens knew she was missing, or they were feeling exceptionally paranoid. "What do you want?" Klara slid the weasel out of her way with the side of her boot.
"The Queen Mothers are searching for you, and from that ripe smell you're injured," the weasel licked its lips. "They sent you to fetch me. They must prefer you in Hell." Klara picked the weasel up by the scruff of its neck. The weasel grew in size as her revealing touch weakened the scout's ability to remain out of Demon form. The weasel hissed, stretching its altering skin as it resisted the urge to shift, "I'm merely a servant, if I see something that the Queens are interested in then I'm honour bound to report it." Klara dropped the weasel, not surprised that it landed on its claws.
"What honour do you have? you are a Demon hiding in the shape of a weasel?" The weasel darted through her legs, causing Klara to stumble.
"Can't you see I'm heading that way, go back to your hovel," Klara tossed a small ruby at the weasel. The scout leapt at the shimmering stone, wrapping its claws around it.
"Thank you, Heiress, your secret is safe," the hiss drifted in the air, and she looked for the weasel behind her. Instead, there sat the fluffy white bunny winking at her. "Beat it before I send you back to Hell."
The bunny's eye sang with delight as the Demon's true voice ripped through the small body, "Lucifer says Hello," it said, and before Klara could force the Demon back to Hell, it slithered back into the dark bushes.
They know I'm missing. Klara ran her hand through her hair, noticing the lengths of dark blue as her anxiety seeped into her cells. The only downside of having the power of revelation, it’s that it made hiding her own emotions and thoughts damn near impossible. If there was one skill you needed to survive the Forest of Malum, it was the power of deception.
The trees thinned, and the mud path turned to stone, Klara darted behind a tree as she reached the mountain pass. Two Ogres stood on either side of the archway. The pillars were made of bedrock and sculpted into Abadan's armoured form. Both womanly and terrifying, Abadan's ego knows no shame as the High Queen. Klara could see the Castle sitting high in the mountains. The daunting black and grey stone sat amongst the night's clouds. Staircases wrapped around the towers and yellow light peered out from arched windows.
The Queens' Castle once belonged to the Fae Queen and been a grand Castle of white and gold. That was long before Klara's time before the treaty handed Malum over to Lucifer. The Castle was redesigned by the Queens' as they rule the Forest as proxy. Now the Castle stands to intimidate the Creatures below.
Klara could trick the Ogres on watch, they weren't known for their brains, but as she was about to step out, two of Abadan's Crimson Guard replaced the Ogres. Klara considered turning herself in.They will probably search me,she thought, knowing she couldn't be found with the gems. Klara struck the tree with her fist. When she looked up, a guard was staring in her direction, and she had no choice but to step out from the tree line.
Klara turned down the road and walked away from the mountain pass. The Guards eyed Klara as she passed, but they wouldn't recognize her. The only good thing about being kept prisoner is that very few Creatures knew Klara's face. When she could no longer feel their eyes on her back, Klara let out a sigh.
The market road was empty at this hour. There were no merchant carts or families headed to the dawn markets to search for whatever food had been dug up, caught or smuggled through the Port the night before. She reached the crossroads where the mud and stone roads met.
I've had better ideas.Klara paced the crossroads and the moonlight was a beacon for what she was about to do. But as she felt her T-shirt painted to her bloodied body, she knew she didn't have much time. The Queens would discover her wound and a fight she could explain but discovering gems meant challenging their power over of her.
Klara dug a small hole in the centre of the crossroads and let the gems fall into the hole. The ground vibrated as the earth sensed the use of magic. Klara swiped her wound, gathering the blood she needed. Droplets of blood fell from her fingertips and onto the precious gems. She only had to wait a few seconds before the dealer appeared.
"Heiress? What can a mere dealer do for you?" The Crossroads Demon buzzed with excitement as it sensed the finery of the gems and the chance of a deal.
The shadowy Demon bowed before Klara, and she rolled her eyes, gesturing for the Demon to rise. Its yellow eyes trained on her. "You know who I am?"
The Demon chuckled softly. "What Demon doesn't know the scent of Lucifer's blood." The smacking of the Demon's lips sent shivers down Klara's spine.
"No deals are to be made at this crossroad until I remove the gems and this," Klara ordered removing the walkman from her pocket and headphones from around her neck.
The Demon darted around her, not revealing its face or form. "No deals…and concealing Human contraband, I could be tortured for a decade for hiding such a thing," the Demon darted away from the object in her hand. As if to touch the walkman would burn its shadowed skin. Klara didn't need to see the Demon to know it was pouting.
"Edisa! You will obey me," Klara ordered, and a clawed hand emerged from the shadow, snatching the walkman from her hands.
"What's in it for me?" Edisa snarled. Klara snapped her fingers, revealing the Demon's real face. A pentagram was scarred into the centre of the Demon's forehead. The Demon hissed in protest, startled by the sudden exposure.
"I won't tell my Father that you have been..." she grabbed Edisa's clawed hand seeing past Edisa's eyes and into the Demon's darkest secrets. At first, Klara saw nothing but darkness, but as her magic snaked its way through the Demon's mind, she saw its Human birth, the murder that turned the soul Demonic and then she had the ammo she needed.
"Sneaking Demons out from Hell for a percentage of their dealt souls, that's punishable by Maze," Klara shrugged, and Edisa dropped to their knees with its disfigured hands splayed on the road. Klara's hand went to her hair as she felt a strand come away. Without a heart, every touch and revealed truth would cost her.
"I beg your forgiveness. I will do what you ask," Edisa panted for mercy, and with the threat of the Maze looming, Klara knew her gems and walkman were safe. She would only have a short amount of time before the Demon figured out a way to betray her. It was in their nature.
"Go before I change my mind," Klara said, and in a puff of red vines, Edisa vanished.
???
Klara found her way back through the Forest to the concealed side of the mountain. She looked at her boots caked in mud from pushing the dirt on top of the gems. She smacked them against a tree because tracking mud into the Castle would mean punishment.
Klara craned her neck, ready for the climb to the escape tunnel. Klara scaled the mountain until the tops of the trees merged into one and her shoulder pulled from its socket straining under her weight. Klara cursed the Queens for living on the highest mountain peak. One of Eve's enchantments could have easily moved the location of the Castle, but due to their incessant paranoia, the Queens preferred the strategical advantage.I'll give them something to be paranoid about.Klara smiled at the thought.
"One last push," Klara muttered resting her forehead against the cold stone. Usually, the climb took her less than ten minutes, but as her nails bit into the rock, she felt like she had been climbing for an eternity. Fresh blood absorbed into her t-shirt and dungarees as she pulled her body over the ledge to the escape tunnel. Klara leant on her knees, her hand slipping inside her jacket. She wasn't sure where her wounds began and ended. The salty smell of the ocean whipped up around her as she stared at the sea in the distance. The escape tunnels had been created after the last uprising so that Klara would have a way out if those who opposed her future rule rose again. And yet it was the beings ordered to protect Klara that she wanted to escape from.
The fallen strands of ivy concealing the entrance of the tunnel swept back and Klara stared into the darkness that was ready to consume those who dared enter. Unlike trespassers, Klara was welcomed. She pressed her hand against the invisible door, and a rainbow of colours echoed from her hand. After a moment, vines of magic wove together, and a crystal door took shape.
