Bound to the dark king

*Serena*

I tried not to stare at him really. I tried to look away, but it was impossible. His gaze had me imprisoned and I couldn't do any other thing than to just stare at him. Taking in his appearance. 

 His jet black hair glistened in the light and it was perfectly tousled like he had been running his hands through it for hours. His face was devastatingly perfect even as he was blazing fury right now. High, strong cheek bones, long perfect slanted nose and lips.. his lips were a deep pink, lush and full. His chin was so sharp that you could probably cut through iron with it. Who is this guy?

 It shouldn't be possible for anyone to be this perfect. It was unfair really. I instantly knew that he was not a human. He was a god. And what a beautiful god he was. I was entranced by his face. And his height, he was almost as tall as the little room itself, he was wearing a long, free coat but I could tell he was huge and muscled. He literally swallowed the whole room just by standing there. 

 I took a deep breath, trying to steady my nerves but it wasn't working. I needed to think and use my brain. Omg say something Rena!

 "Are you going to just stand there ogling me all night or do you plan to explain what the hell you're doing in here??" His voice boomed with the force of a thunderbolt. I almost shivered uncontrollably at the sheer power drifting off of him. My throat was dry and I couldn't find the words to explain myself. 

How do I tell him that a voice in my head and a weird feeling had lead me here? He would probably think I'm crazy. 

It took me a moment to remember that he was waiting for my response. I cleared my throat and raised my head up fearlessly. Although I was silently trembling with fear. 

 "Um..well..I was trying to get some...water but I got lost and somehow stumbled upon this room. Is this your room? I'm sorry for the intrusion, I did not mean to. I'll leave now." 

 "What is your name?" 

I paused. "Excuse me?" 

 "Your name."

"Rena." I deliberately avoided telling him my full name. What if he planned to report me or something? "I'm sorry, please excuse me." 

I moved to step past him as he was standing on the side of the doorway but he swiftly stepping in my way, stopping me from leaving the room. I was not anywhere near him yet but I could smell his scent. That woody, chocolatey scent filled the room, slowly intoxicating my senses. It was no wonder I wasn't able to breathe properly. This man was stealing my breath away without doing anything. Get a grip, girl!

 "Are you going to step out of my way?" My impatience had me finding my voice. I was getting annoyed with his reaction now. 

 "You're not leaving this room until you tell me how exactly you got here." His voice was cold and sharp as glass, his dark blue eyes filled with contempt. 

I could feel the anger building up inside of me but I forced myself to keep calm. "I already told you. I got lost. Now move out of the way so I can find my way back to my room."

I took a step forward and almost sighed in relief when I saw him moving slightly away from the door. I was glad I found my voice and sounded as authoritative as I could be. I almost stepped out of the room when his large hand grabbed my left arm and pulled me backwards, causing me to crash into him with a shocked gasp escaping my lips. 

 In a split second, my hand instinctively moved into my dress and found my small knife and I blindingly pulled it out and raised it to his throat, my heart thumping widely in my chest with anger and shock at how he was so bold to put his hands on me. Who the fuck did he think he was??

 His eyebrows shot up in surprise as if he had just noticed me holding a knife to his throat. We were close. Too close that I could see the tiny flicks of purple in his eyes. His face was dangerously close to mine and I did not know how to feel about that. My skin burned hot where his hand was touching me. I was not exactly touching him but it felt like his hands were touching my body and reaching into my soul. My stomach was tumbling widely with sensations I had no business feeling. What was happening to me? Who the hell was this man??

"Get your hands off of me or I will slit your throat in a second." I didn't care about the tremble in my voice. I was too pissed to give a damn right now even though everything about this man screamed danger. His eyes glowed imminently, causing my body to vibrate violently with fear. How was it possible that his eyes glowed?

 "You will slit my throat?" He repeated like he didn't believe the words that had just came out of my mouth. I stared at him silently, waiting for his next move. "Do you know I could erase you from existence with just a snap of my fingers?" His voice was dangerously low and light, A stark contrast to the terrifying words he had just said to me. My heart thumped so loudly in my chest, I was scared he could hear it.

 "I don't know who the hell you are, but I'm one of the chosen maidens. A guest of the sky king himself. What do you think will happen to you when he learns one of his maidens was attacked?" I tried not to let the fear show in my voice. I didn't know this person but I was certain he could kill me if he wanted right now. I waited, the knife still pointed at his throat.

His eyes widened slightly at my bluff in that moment and I silently thanked the stars for the idea of using the sky king to threaten him even though I hated the king with every fiber of my being. He studied my face for a moment as if considering his options. Then he suddenly released me, his hand dropping from my arms with a mocking smile on his face. 

 The moment I'm free, l turned and sprinted out of the cellar room and pushed on the wall before running down the stairs with my chest in my throat. I could somehow feel the man's eyes trail after me until l reached the end of that corner. I stopped after I was certainly far away from the cellar room and tried to catch my breath. I couldn't believe the voice in my head had tried to get me killed.

 "Seriously, head voice?" I whispered as I hurried along the now dark hallways of the maidens quarters. I was never going to leave my room because of any stupid voice in my head anymore. I shut my door with a heavy click as soon as I got back In my room and quickly slipped under the covers of my soft mattress. 

 Who was that man? Was he perhaps one of the guards or was he someone important? But he couldn't have been since his room was a lowly, tiny cellar? or maybe he was only a figment of my imagination?

 No. He couldn't be. Not with the way he had grabbed me so ruthlessly. My thoughts went back to the moment he had touched my arm. How it had felt every part of my body caught on instant fire. His eyes too... They had seemed to stare into the deepest parts of my soul...

 "That's enough Rena! " I shook my head vigorously, banishing the thoughts of that man. I needed to get some sleep and prepare for tomorrow. I had no idea what tomorrow would hold, but I hoped it would never lead me to that scary monster. 

 After some minutes of tossing and turning, I finally fell into a deep, dreamless sleep.

 ****

The sharp knock on my door woke me up from my sleep. I opened my eyes slowly, wincing as the headache that always hit me whenever I slept late at home assailed my brain. 

I was about to get out of my bed and answer the door when it pulled open and a beautiful Sigrid walked in, a bright smile plastered on her immaculate face. 

 "Good morning Miss! It's time for the welcoming gathering. You must get dressed and find your way to the great hall as soon as possible. The king has requested everyone's presence. Now I know that you may feel nervous.." Sigrid was yapping uncontrollably and I found myself trying to keep up with her words. 

 "Um...sorry.. where is this great hall?" I cut in after a while. 

 "It's in the next building. You can ask one of the guards to direct you once you're about to leave but I'm certain you and the other maidens will easily find your way. The castle might be big and endless what one can never get lost in it. Will that be all?"

 I blinked. "Well.. is there a certain dress code or can I wear whatever I wish?" I didn't have fancy clothes because I was never really a fan of them and with the hardship on the land, it had been quite hard for papa to afford anything more than the basics. 

 "Since it's your first day here, you can wear your own clothes, but I'm sure after today, dresses will provided for you. But endeavor to wear your most special garment. I'll leave you to it now, please do not take long." Sigrid flashed me a smile before walking out of my room and closing my door with a soft click. 

 I sighed and wondered how I was going to get through the day without losing my mind. Was I really cut out for this? 

...

After bathing and putting on my favorite pink dress, I stared at myself in the mirror. My orange curls were tangled and piled on top of my head and my face was bare of any make over. My olive skin had a dryness to it that i tried to ignore. I didn't look flattering at all but then I had never been the type to care about my looks. My goal was not to win this dumb competition anyway. What I needed was to find a way to save my family from the jaws of the dark king. My once favorite pink gown looked very worn out but it still fit me perfectly. I took a deep breath and stepped out of my room.

 Just beside my room, a girl was standing on the hall way, her hands in her dark long hair. She was probably one of the 5 other maidens. I wondered if should ask her for directions to the great hall but decided against it. I cleared my throat and stepped past her, my face facing the ground.

 "Oh, hi! You must be the last maiden. Aren't you?" The girl's cheerful voice stopped me in my tracks.

 "um... Yes...hi..." I managed.

 "My name is Manila, from the house of tarot. I'm the fifth chosen maiden. What's your name?"

 "Serena. House of Arcane." I answered sheepishly. I was extremely terrible at making new friends and seemed like this girl was very friendly. Her face was perfectly made up and her dress had this glitter all over it. compared to her, I looked like a maid. I suddenly felt conscious of myself.

 "You're very pretty Serena, I hope we'll be friends with each other. I have a feeling you don't have much friends back at home." 

I chuckled nervously. She was right. I liked her already. She kept on introducing herself and telling me all about where she was from while I listened silently as we walked to the great hall together. Manila seemed to know where we were supposed to go. I followed her until we reached the entrance of the great hall. My mind jumped. This was it. I was about to face my destiny and meet the people who were the reason my people suffered dearly.

I was about to meet the people who I would one day destroy. 

***