The palace was in shambles. Locked away in her room, 9-year-old Kyra was safe, but it was just a matter of time before the chaos caught up with her. She could hear her people screaming, begging for mercy. Through the windows, she could see the fire ravaging the tall trees of the East Forest. She wanted to help but couldn't move. Her will was disconnected from her body, which was being ruled by fear. And besides, how could she help? Her powers were latent and wouldn't manifest before her twenty-fifth birthday. All she could do was staying in her bed, not moving, waiting for the end to come
Suddenly, the door of her room opened and hit the wall with a loud bang. Without turning her head to look at the door, Kyra knew who was there. Since her early childhood, she had learned to identify people by their aura.
-Kyra, whispered the newcomer. My baby. Thank the Ancestors, you are alive.
Kyra was hugged with a strength that almost bruised her. She looked at her grandmother and gasped. The old lady wasn't in a good shape. Her hair, which usually was always perfectly styled, was a mess: her bun was falling apart on a side of her head, and strands of hair seemed to have been pulled out. She was covered with blood and her nightdress was ripped on the shoulder.
—Granny
The tears she hadn't been able to shed since the takeover started, were now flooding her cheeks. It was like an enormous weight was compressing her stomach, preventing her to breath.
—Granny
Her grandmother didn't take the time to comfort like how she used to. She chastised her, as if she was no longer able to show the kindness that was her brand.
—Pull yourself together, she told her with a stiff voice. We don't have time to lose. We must go.
Kyra couldn't calm down. Seeing her grandmother in that state made her hysterical. She needed to know where the rest of the family was. She asked the question to her grand mother who had put a towel over her head and taken her in her arms.
—Where are Mama? Dada? My brothers? Kelly?
—They are waiting for us. They ran into the Sacred Forest. We will reunite with them there.
For the first time since the beginning of the night, Kyra felt alive again. They were alive! It was all that mattered to her.
—We are leaving, my little princess. Close your eyes.
The young princess obeyed. But as soon as the old woman stood up, she opened them again.
Her grandmother left the room and started walking down the hall.
This side of the palace wasn't modern. There wasn't running water nor electricity. The halls and rooms were lit by torches placed into iron ring fastened in the wall. While she was going away, her chin on her grandmother's shoulders, she could see, thanks to the flickering flames, the blood on the walls, the dead body of her nanny, who was a second mother to her…
Kyra removed her hands from Elora's, interrupting their shared vision. 19 years later, those memories still hold the power to break her. She left the bedroom and rush into the bathroom, where she vomited her breakfast.
She closed the lid and flush the toilet, then she sat on the ground, her back and head against the wall.
What happened on the palace when she was a child was the most traumatizing event of her life. Making her see and feel it was, in her opinion, beyond cruel. Especially when her grandmother lied to her. Her mother, dad, brothers, and sister were not alive, as she thought. When they arrived at safety, Elora told her the truth. They were already dead. The old queen lied to her because she wanted to get out of the castle quietly, without having to deal with a hysterical kid. Feeling relieved to know that they were alive to finally find out that they were gone for good had been the worst traumatism for her.
The passing years had helped her heal a little. But reliving this event had slit her scars wide open.
—Was it necessary to make me go through all this? She asked to Elora who had joined her in the bathroom and sat next to her.
-Yes. It was. You will be gone for months, Kyra. I need to make sure that you are focused, that your goals won't drown in the fancy and lavish lifestyle of the castle.
—How could have ever forget what they did to my family?
She hated the vampires and the witches with everything she got. She hated them and wanted to make them pay. She wouldn't rest until each and everyone of them were avenged.
—Kyra…
Elora, who had probably read the resentment in her aura, was looking at her anxiously.
—Don't think about revenge, deary. It's a worthless desire that poisoned you mind and your soul.
Kyra didn't share that opinion. She though that revenge was necessary. The land was soiled with the blood of her family and their allies, it should now be covered with the blood of the vampire royal family and the witches. It would just be justice.
—Revenge won't bring anything good, Elora insisted. They killed our family because they were afraid of our power. Imagine how they would feel if you got there to annihilate them. They will think they were right to kill our loved ones and that we are a threat to eradicate.
—You didn't want me to think about getting even, you shouldn't have brought me back to that night.
—Maybe it was a mistake. But I really had to make sure that you never forget the reason why you will infiltrate the castle.
—I can never forget my mission. Nothing will blind me.
—Love might.
Kyra laughed. Love? She banned that feeling a long time ago. The only person that matters to her was her grandmother. That woman was everything to her, and she could literally give her life for her. She didn't have feeling for anyone else. She used people if they happened to be useful and dispose of them. Her relationship with others wasn't healthy, but it was safe. Not loving people reduced the possibilities of her being heartbroken. Elora had told her multiple times that she should have friends, but she never listened to her.
Foreseeing that the old woman was preparing to engage in a speech about love, Kyra rapidly asked a totally different question to dodge the admonition.
—I never asked you… because we never really talked about that day… but why didn't they find me? Vampires were on a murder spree. Why was I the only one saved?
—Your bedroom was in a secret part of the castle only known by a few. It was also hidden by a spell, and no one could open it, unless they were your blood. You could see the outside, but no one could notice that your room existed.
—Dad, mom, and my siblings were not protected the same way…
There was a little bit of anger in her voice, and Elora sighed. She bit her lips, fighting her tears who finally got the best of her.
—We thought that it was necessary only for you. Vampires and witches… they hated our kind because we had the powers of both sides, and even more. They always thought that no one should have that much power. Revolt was already brewing among vampires and witches, and we knew that they would have been angry beyond measure if they had learned that there was an even more powerful hybrid than the king and his wife. At the time, we told the population that you were ill born, and hid from the world. Your dad, the king, thought it was enough. He was naïve enough to think that they would soon come into their senses and realized that having a king who shared particularities with and understands both races was the best possible thing. But he was wrong. Most vampire and witches wanted to live a separate life, and some of them thought it was worth killing our family over it.
Kyra closed her eyes. She remembered her father 's warm smile, his sweet tone, and nice manners. He was the kind of man that wouldn't hurt a fly. they should have love him. But because they couldn't stand the fact that he was more powerful, they kill him. And for that reason, Kyra hated them.
—I'm more than ready for my mission, she growled. What will I have to do, exactly?
—You will be infiltrating the kingdom working as a maid.
—A maid?!
—The vampire's queen maid.
—That will never work. I won't get access to the high places and therefore I will never discover their secret.
—You don't have a choice. It's the only post available in the castle. It's not ideal, but you are smart enough to slowly work your way up and become the queen's confidante.
—That will not get me far.
—Do you have a better plan?
Kyra did. She couldn't share with the old woman who would vehemently disagree. She grumbled instead.
—No. I don't.
—Good. My old servant has a daughter about your age who had been accepted as the maid of the Queen of vampires. She is a brunette, so you will have to adopt the black hair. And her green eyes.
—I bet. A vampire with gray hair and gray eyes would be bizarre.
—Exact.
—When will I start?
—In two weeks. It's the Victory Festival this week. The castle is crawling with guests, and they are not always gentle and respectful. There has been rumors of rape, and I wouldn't like them to get around you.
—I really would like to see one of them around me…
—I don't. You shouldn't attract attention. Keep it low. Stay in your linekeep, your eyes and your ears open and …
—And slowly work my way up. I know.
Elora looked at her with suspicion.
—You are really taking this with calm.
—Shouldn't I?
—Yes. But you are too quiet. You accepted this too easily.
She touched her and tried to access her thoughts. Kyra rejected her. And she felt the pain.
—Sorry, Grandmother. You taught me to keep people out of my mind, and you taught me well.
-Don't do anything rash, Kyra.
Kyra avoided having the innocent eyes. Her grandmother wouldn't buy it.
—I'll steer clear of trouble. And I will not do anything that could bring problems to your door. I will focus on discovering their secret weapon. I process.
(Hello dear stranger, thanks for taking the time to read my story. :-)
I want to tell you something. English is not my native language, so I might have made mistakes in the text. If you notice them, could you show them to me, please? That would be very kind of you.)