As the chaos in the Emperor's chamber reached its peak, Empress Lamaine's anguished scream tore through the room, a raw expression of the rage and despair boiling within her. The sight of Theo, bloodied and broken on the floor, had ignited a fury that seemed almost beyond human comprehension. Her heart pounded with a ferocious blend of grief and anger, a dangerous concoction that threatened to unravel her composure.
Just then, the heavy wooden doors of the chamber were flung open, and Axel's soldiers burst into the room, their armor clanking and their weapons drawn. The sudden intrusion disrupted the tense standoff, filling the room with the sounds of hurried footsteps and shouts.
At the same moment, a ragged breath emerged from the Emperor. His eyes fluttered open, filled with confusion and pain. The room fell into a stunned silence as he took in the scene before him—his son Theo lying in a pool of blood, Axel standing defiant, and the Empress clutching a syringe with a look of wild determination.
The Emperor's voice, hoarse and desperate, broke the silence. "Don't kill our son," he cried out, his eyes pleading with Lamaine. "Don't kill Axel!"
But Lamaine's fury was unabated. She moved toward Axel, her eyes wild with a dangerous mix of denial and rage. Her grip tightened around the syringe as she aimed it at Axel, her face twisted in a mask of hatred.
"It's too late!" Lamaine shouted, her voice breaking. "He's not my son, he's Vivian's!" Her words were a frantic attempt to shield herself from the crushing reality of her own actions.
The Emperor's eyes widened in shock and disbelief. "Axel is your son!" he shouted, the realization dawning on him with a heavy weight. "Stop this madness!"
Lamaine's face contorted with denial and despair as the truth of her actions began to hit her. The weight of her betrayal and the enormity of her mistake crashed down upon her, but there was no turning back. The realization that her own son was lying on the floor, dying from her machinations, drove her to a scream of utter despair.
In the midst of the turmoil, the Empress's resolve faltered. She stared at the syringe in her hand, then at Axel, her face a portrait of frantic regret. The room was now a whirlwind of emotion, the clamor of soldiers, the Emperor's anguished cries, and Lamaine's tortured screams creating a cacophony of chaos and heartbreak.
Empress Lamaine's scream echoed through the chamber, a shriek of triumph and madness. She clutched the empty syringe in her hand, her laughter rising like a twisted symphony in the chaos around her. The sight of Axel collapsing to the ground, his body succumbing to the lethal dose she had injected, filled her with a sickening satisfaction. Finally, the hindrance she had fought against all these years was gone. All of this, every ruthless decision, every drop of blood spilled—it had all been for Theo.
She turned her gaze to Theo, who was losing blood rapidly, his life slipping away just as fast. Her laughter wavered, faltering as she saw the pale, weakening face of the son she had fought so hard to protect.
But then, the Emperor's voice cut through her twisted joy. "Why did you do this to our children?" His voice was thick with sorrow and anger, his eyes fixed on her with a mixture of pain and disbelief. "Do you not understand what you've done?"
Empress Lamaine turned to him, her laughter dying in her throat. "I did it for Theo! I did it to protect him, to secure his future!" Her voice was shrill, desperate, as if she were trying to convince herself as much as the Emperor.
The Emperor shook his head, his expression darkening with the weight of the secret he was about to reveal. "You don't understand, Lamaine. You've been living a lie—a lie I created to protect our children." His voice trembled, but he pressed on, knowing the truth had to be told. "The late Princess Bianca was our eldest daughter, born to Vivian, the first Empress. A girl being born was not acceptable; the higher-ups would have forced me to kill her until I had a male heir."
Lamaine's eyes widened, confusion and dread creeping into her features. "What are you talking about?" she demanded, her voice unsteady.
"In terms of hierarchy, Bianca was the rightful heir," the Emperor continued, his voice heavy with regret. "But I couldn't let them kill my daughter. So I switched the babies. The baby that Vivian gave birth to was not Axel. It was Bianca."
Lamaine staggered back, her breath catching in her throat. "No… no, that's not possible. Theo and Bianca were my twins, my children!" Her voice was rising in pitch, panic setting in as she struggled to process what she was hearing.
The Emperor shook his head slowly. "No, Lamaine. Axel and Theo are your true sons. Bianca was never yours. I gave Axel to Vivian as her son, and you raised Bianca and Theo as your twins."
The realization crashed down on Lamaine like a tidal wave. Her laughter turned to gasping breaths as the truth of her situation came into focus. "All this time…" she whispered, her voice barely audible. "All this time, I thought I was protecting my son—protecting Theo… but Axel… Axel was my son too." Her eyes filled with tears as she looked at Axel, lying unconscious on the ground. "My son…"
The Emperor's voice was pained as he continued, "You've been fighting for something that was already yours, Lamaine. Theo and Axel—they are both our sons. But now… now you've destroyed everything."
Lamaine collapsed beside Axel, her hands trembling as she reached out to touch his face. Tears streamed down her cheeks as she realized the enormity of her mistake. "Axel… my son… I did this to you. I've killed you, and I've killed Theo… for what?" Her voice broke into sobs as she cradled Axel's head in her lap, her body shaking with grief.
Her screams of agony filled the room, echoing off the walls as she rocked back and forth, holding Axel close. "My baby, no... my baby," She looked up at the Emperor, her eyes wild with despair.
But the Emperor could only watch in silence, his own heart breaking at the sight of his family torn apart by the lies he had told to protect them. The soldiers stood by, unsure of what to do, their weapons lowered as they witnessed the Empress's complete breakdown.
Lamaine's cries grew louder, more desperate, as she clung to Axel, her grief consuming her. "My baby…" Her voice trailed off into incoherent sobs as the weight of her actions crushed her spirit.
The chamber, once filled with power and authority, was now a tomb of despair. The Empress's screams of agony were the only sounds, a haunting reminder of the destruction that had been wrought in the name of love and ambition.