Music recommendation: Dark Horse- Katy Perry ft. Juicy J
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The sound of heels clicking against cold stone echoed through the dimly lit hall, each step resonating like a ticking clock.
The servants froze, their eyes darting toward the approaching figure, their faces pale.
"She's coming!" One of them yelled in panic but one look from the others had him shut up.
A solitary figure emerged from the shadows, her presence commanding attention. The only sound was her heels clinking, a rhythmic warning of her approach.
As she reclined on the gilded throne, a faint, menacing glimmer flickered in her emerald eyes. Sharp, unforgiving, they glowed with a dangerous curiosity that matched the sardonic curl of her lips.
She took a slow, deliberate bite from a gleaming red apple. The shadows danced around her face, briefly illuminating the fiery cascade of crimson curls spilling over her shoulders.
Her black gown, lined with glittering threads of crimson, shimmered as she swept across the floor, her strides majestic and predatory. Each step echoed with a whisper of authority and malice.
Servants scurried around, too fearful to let a sound escape them. They knew better than to disturb their princess when her temper simmered, unpredictable and terrifyingly lethal.
Suddenly, she rose, her movement fluid and sharp like a serpent uncoiling. Her gaze roved over the cowering attendants, her mouth curving in a mocking smile.
She took a step forward, gazing at her servants who had their heads bowed while she twirled a strand of her hair in annoyance.
"Useless," she purred, her voice smooth and cruel.
"All of you. Can none of you tell me where this dragoness hides? Or do you think I'll let you live simply because you serve me?"
A tremor of terror passed through the crowd, heads lowering further.
"I believe you all haven't lost your voices." She asked but none of them could speak as they dared not even glance at her face.
"Fine!" She dropped her hand from her red hair. "Perhaps I should make your dream of not speaking come true." She said and raised her hand, a blue light hovering above it.
"No! No! Milady," one of them finally spoke, stopping her from whatever wickedness she was about to commit.
The figure stepped forward, a stout dwarf with a crooked back and eyes wide with nervous energy.
"M-milady..." he stammered, "w-we tracked the magic you placed on the two men." He started as Dasha stared down at him.
His head was barely even at par with her knees as he looked up, holding a scroll.
"Speak," she ordered, her gaze piercing the dwarf's.
Grimp fumbled with the scroll and his voice trembled.
"I-it was leading us to the dragoness as you instructed. B-b-but someone- someone removed it."
A gasp filled the hall at Grimp's last words and Dasha's eyes darkened.
Her voice was low, like the hiss of a blade unsheathing.
"Removed it?" She repeated, each word dripping with venomous incredulity.
"Y-yes, Milady. It appears so-" Grimp was still speaking when she commanded,
"Give me the scroll."
He stretched his hand upward and Dasha collected the scroll, opening and scrutinizing in disbelief.
The scroll contained the spell she had cast on Matthew and Telma and it was supposed to reach a destination- The dragoness.
However, it stopped midway when it reached the second guard's body and somehow seemed to move back to the first guard.
Impossible.
Dasha looked at Grimp and the other servants in disbelief.
"How is this possible?" She held the scroll forward with a questioning gaze.
Grimp stared at her with his hands behind his back, not knowing how to reply.
Dasha raised her brows in confusion, "Do you mean to tell me that there is a force in this world that dares to undo my magic?"
Grimp nodded, trembling, "It seems, Milady."
Dasha's laugh filled the hall, soft and dangerous, wrapping itself around the room like smoke. She leaned down, her eyes piercing into the dwarf's, her voice dropping to a mocking whisper. "How unfortunate. For you." She threw the scroll back to him.
The dwarf recoiled, visibly shaking as he collected the scroll and clutched it, but Dasha's attention was already elsewhere. She rose to her full height, casting a withering look over the hall.
Her eyes burned with frustration, yet there was a flicker of intrigue there—a curiosity ignited by the first true challenge she'd encountered.
This mysterious force in Vlamunda had destroyed thousands of her men in an instant. It was something… something unlike anything she'd faced. The thought was intoxicating.
She had had to face her father, King Daniel Macron as to how his battalion of men had all gone dead in one night, something that had never happened since she began conquering different kingdoms in search of this dragoness.
She had been convinced the creature was in Vlamunda after that incident and cast a locator spell on those two men she had seen, observing they were important men and using the opportunity to track the dragoness only for this...
She stepped to the edge of a towering, stained-glass window, sweeping her gaze over her dark kingdom below.
The lands stretched out beneath her, bathed in shadows as black as her own heart.
Somewhere out there was the dragoness, still hidden from her grasp, protected by this elusive force that dared to defy her.
Who was the so called sorcerer powerful enough to purify her dark magic?
She had heard Vlamunda was banned of dark magic years ago and thought it was going to be easy to 'get it over with' with the bloody kingdom. Turns out she was wrong.
Vlamunda was definitely harbouring that dragoness, she had no doubts.
"I think it's time I paid Vlamunda another visit myself-" she raised her hand, ready to use her magic when Grimp suddenly stumped towards her again.
"Milady...milady-wait!" He yelled as he ran to her front, stopping her from disappearing. "I-I-I wasn't done with my report," he stuttered, raising his head to stare at the princess.
"If it's more bad news... you'd best step aside," she said, tilting her head to the side.
Grimp knew Princess Dasha was very impulsive and would only go to Vlamunda to cause more trouble which they couldn't afford now...not when they didn't know who was behind this.
He spoke, "A-ac-actually...there's development." He opened the scroll in his hand again, aware that the princess had not really observed the spell's positions.
"A development?" She asked with furrowed brows to see Grimp nod.
"Well, don't waste my time then, speak," she instructed, her blood boiling at the thought that there was someone as powerful as her existing.
The dwarf gulped, holding the scroll tightly as he delivered his news. "One of the guards, Telma—well, it seems the dark magic didn't leave him completely." He hesitated, glancing nervously at her before rushing to finish. "Instead, it corrupted him, twisted his mind and body, and... brought him back."
Dasha's eyes flashed with a sudden, deadly interest. "Back to life?"
Grimp nodded, visibly bracing himself for her reaction. He handed her the scroll again and this time, she paid more attention, taking note of how the locator spell trace didn't completely disappear.
"Yes, Milady. Not as he was, though. There was... a glitch." He chose the word carefully, hoping it would carry the right amount of caution and respect. "The spell has altered him. He's not fully human anymore, but not a true shade, either."
A shade.
She tilted her head, a slow, sly smile forming on her lips. The idea of one of her creations turning into something unpredictable, twisted by her dark magic, thrilled her more than it unnerved her. "And what, precisely, does this 'glitch' mean, Grimp?"
The dwarf shifted uneasily. "Telma can no longer be trusted. He's loyal to you, but... he's unstable. The magic keeps him bound to you, but he could act on his own accord if pushed."
Dasha let out a low, satisfied hum, giving back the scroll to Grimp and her fingers traced a slow pattern in the air as she considered the possibilities.
She walked toward the other servants who remained bowed, not even daring to move an inch.
Her index finger moved to her red hair again and she twirled the strand of curly hair smeared close to her face. It was a habit she formed when mischief was on her mind. "So, the spell didn't weaken him. It strengthened him," she murmured, almost to herself.
"A knight with dark magic embedded so deeply it brought him back from death. How... fascinating."
Grimp swallowed. "Milady, I must advise against going to Vlamunda just yet. With Telma in this state, his very existence could draw more attention than we'd prefer."
Dasha looked at him, one eyebrow arching in amused defiance. "And what would you have me do, Grimp? Wait here while this dragoness remains hidden from me?"
"Not wait, Milady," Grimp said, voice soft but steady. Sometimes, he felt the urge to face palm at this impulsive princess.
"Simply... observe. Telma's condition could be used to our advantage. We might learn more about the power protecting Vlamunda by studying how it's altered him. A risk, yes, but one that might yield... surprising results." The dwarf was enthusiastic about this. He was one who loved the intrigue.
Dasha's smile widened, a cruel light gleaming in her eyes as she regarded the dwarf. "Surprising results, indeed." She turned from him, glancing down at the apple core at her feet, her smile twisting into something even darker. "Fine, Grimp. I'll stay. But if this lead fails to bring me my dragoness..." Her voice dropped to a deadly whisper. "You will join Telma in his corrupted form, and I will make you wish I had killed you first."
Grimp nodded, bowing deeply. "Understood, Milady."
Dasha swept away from him, her black gown trailing like smoke as she moved back toward her throne, her mind already spinning with the possibilities Telma's corruption presented.
A glitch—one she hadn't foreseen, one that had turned her own magic into something beyond her control.
The power she wielded was slipping into something stranger, darker, and for the first time, even Dasha felt the thrill of stepping into the unknown.