"Dead." The word echoed in my mind, each repetition seeping deeper into my thoughts as I lay in the dimly lit room, unable to sleep. I turned restlessly on the small bed, my body tense, unsure of what the morning might bring. My thoughts swirled with questions I had no answers to, each one more terrifying than the last. Would someone kill me, just as they had done with the woman before me? Was there a place for someone like me in this palace, or was I simply being prepared for another cruel end?The silence stretched thick and oppressive until I didn't even realize when the night had slipped away, replaced by the first light of dawn. A soft knock on the door startled me out of my spiraling thoughts. My heart skipped a beat."Come in?" I called, but the door opened before I had finished the word. A young woman stepped in, her uniform—identical to the ones the Kaambh girls wore—draped over her arms. She wasn't as strikingly beautiful as the others, but she had the same delicate features and slim figure, a product of whatever cruel perfection this place demanded.She handed me the clothes with a stiff, practiced smile. "Meekh asked you to change into these," she said, her voice polite, but I could see the weariness in her eyes. Without waiting for a reply, she turned on her heel and left the room, the door slamming shut with a finality that made me flinch.I stood there for a moment, staring at the uniform in my hands. It was nothing like the rags I had been wearing for the past six months. The fabric was soft, delicate, and impossibly smooth, a pale pink color that seemed to shimmer in the dim light. The skirt was flowy at the bottom, with a deep slit starting at the hip, leaving little to the imagination. It wasn't as overtly scandalous as the clothes I'd seen the other girls wear, but it was revealing in a way that made me feel exposed.I had no place in this world. The women in the Kaambh quarters were beyond beautiful, each one sculpted to perfection—slender, curvy, with long legs that looked like they could grace the covers of magazines. And then there was me, a blemish in a sea of flawless faces. Why had Nizain brought me here? What purpose could I possibly serve in a place like this?I swallowed the growing lump in my throat and decided to focus on the present. The shower beckoned, and I needed the comfort of warmth, of cleanliness. I stepped into the small bathroom and turned on the water, the sensation of soap and shampoo on my skin almost overwhelming after months of neglect. I scrubbed my body with force, as though I could wash away the dirt of my past, the fear that clung to me.When I emerged, the silk uniform clung to my body like a second skin. The soft material felt like a dream against my sore, bruised flesh, and I couldn't help but marvel at how it hugged my curves, accentuating everything I had tried so hard to hide. My cleavage was visible now, the low neckline leaving me vulnerable in a way I didn't know how to handle.I stared at my reflection in the mirror for a moment, the face that looked back at me a stranger's. I didn't belong here, not in this life, not in this world. But the reality of the situation slammed into me with a cold, unyielding force. There was no escaping it now.Before I could gather my thoughts, the door swung open with a loud creak. Meekh entered without knocking, her eyes sharp and assessing."Come with me," she ordered, her voice leaving no room for argument. Without waiting for me to respond, she turned and walked back out.I had no choice but to follow.This time, we didn't go to the courtyard like I expected. Meekh led me up a winding staircase and down another corridor, one that smelled faintly of chlorine, the air thick with the stench of something toxic. My feet faltered for a moment, but I forced myself to keep moving. The light in this part of the palace was dim, casting shadows on the walls that seemed to make the place feel even more suffocating.When we reached the end of the corridor, Meekh pushed open a door without hesitation.The sight that greeted me stole the breath from my lungs.Women. Bound, gagged and suffering in ways I couldn't comprehend. Some were being flogged; others were hooked up to machines that were doing things I couldn't even bring myself to imagine. The noise from the mechanical drums drowned out their screams, the cold, robotic sound of machinery filling the room with an eerie rhythm.I stood frozen in the doorway, the scene unfolding before me so horrific that it almost didn't seem real. My body refused to move, my mind struggling to process what I was seeing. The pain, the helplessness, the sheer degradation—it was all too much. This wasn't Kaambh. This was hell.Thika had been right. There was no escaping this. There was no salvation here, no hope. Just suffering.I tried to look away, but the images were already burned into my mind, seared into my memory, marking me in ways I couldn't undo. The screams, the moans, the mechanical hum of the machines—it would stay with me forever.Meekh didn't seem bothered by it at all. She walked past me, her high heels clicking against the floor as she moved deeper into the room, ignoring the chaos around her as though it were nothing more than background noise.I wanted to run. I wanted to scream. But I was too scared, too paralyzed by the terror that gripped me. I didn't belong here. And yet, here I was."Why am I here?" I whispered, my voice barely audible as the words left my lips. The question hung in the air, and the answer was still elusive, but I needed to ask. My stomach twisted in knots, and each beat of my heart grew heavier with the weight of the truth I was beginning to understand.Before I could brace myself, Meekh's eyes turned cold, and without warning, she lashed out, striking me with a metal rod I hadn't noticed in her hand. The sharp jolt of pain shot through my body, causing me to crumple to the ground, my scream echoing through the room. The electric burn coursed through my veins, and I gasped for breath, trying to steady myself."Did I say you could talk?" she sneered, her tone mocking, venomous. She yanked me up roughly, dragging me across the room with cruel strength.I was too weak to resist, my limbs numb from the shock. She took me to a lounge area that smelled of stale perfume and dampness, the air thick with the stench of suffering. Without ceremony, Meekh reached down and attached a heavy chain to my leg, the cold metal biting into my flesh. The sudden weight pulled me down, and I fell into a devan sofa with a thud. The chain was fastened securely to a hoop in the floor, and no matter how much I strained against it, I couldn't break free."Wait for your master," she said with a sickening smile, her eyes gleaming with dark amusement. It was as though she enjoyed the pain she inflicted on others, the way she took pleasure in dehumanizing them. She turned and walked away, leaving me alone in the cold, dimly lit room.I was left to sit there, bound and helpless. My heart pounded in my chest, panic threatening to swallow me whole. I couldn't stop the tears that welled up, nor could I silence the voice in my head screaming for escape. But there was no escape. I was trapped.I tried to pull against the chain again, hoping for a miracle, but the metal was unforgiving. I slumped back into the chair, defeated, my head hanging low. I didn't know how much time passed, but it felt like hours, maybe longer. The sounds of muffled conversations and footsteps echoed in the background, but no one seemed to pay attention to me, which I was grateful for. I didn't want anyone's attention.Then, two women in slave uniforms entered the room, dragging two unconscious bodies out of the room. I sat up, my heart racing, desperate for any interaction, any sign of kindness. I tried to speak, to call out to them, but my words caught in my throat when I saw what they were doing. One of the women kneeled down and began wiping up a pool of blood from the floor with a rag, her hands moving with practiced efficiency.The sight was unbearable. My stomach churned, and I fought the urge to vomit. My hands gripped the chair, my knuckles white, as I closed my eyes tightly, trying to block out the horrific scene before me. It felt like I was stuck in a nightmare, one that I couldn't wake up from.I tried to steady my breathing, to calm myself, but it wasn't working. The fear, the dread—it was suffocating. I couldn't help it."Well, who do we have here?"I opened my eyes to stare into the face of a young man who couldn't be much older than me.I had seen the face before. He was one of the brothers who had been sitting on the podium during Judgement Day. Akun, I recalled his name. Thika had said that he was the biggest jerk of all the brothers. I instinctively leaned away, the chain pulling taught on the floor."You are the woman Nizain set his eyes on?" Akun asked, leaning over me. God, I already hated him. The images of the blood on the floor were still haunting me, and there was a very good possibility of something like that happening to me. I could die before I even got the chance to rescue my mother."Please," I joined my hands in front of him, begging him to spare me, as the very human words flowed from my mouth without me noticing."Using human language is a crime in Ashudhar, don't you know?"I switched back to Ashubol immediately. My knowledge of the language was bad, but it was enough for people to understand what I was trying to convey."I am sorry. Please let me go. They forced me to come here.""Who forced you?"The Shadows, I wanted to say. The word was on the tip of my tongue, but I held back . Thika had warned me against talking about them in the palace and this man didn't look like someone I could trust.."I don't know who they were."Akun sighed. Before I could comprehend what was happening, a hard hand landed a hit on my cheek with brutal force. "I don't like liars. Try again."I tasted blood. I tried to crawl away, but the chain would only stretch so much.Akun took hold of my dress and yanked it right off my body. I was wearing nothing under those clothes, and now my nakedness was on full display to the room full of people. I wrapped my hand around my body, trying to conceal my nakedness."Humans are pests; they deserve to die," he shouted, laughing like a maniac. He grabbed my leg and dragged me closer to him. My screams reached deaf ears as he spread my legs in front of everyone and sat between them.I tried to get him off me, to kick him away, but my malnourished body was losing the battle quickly. He loosened the ties around his pants, laughing at my misery all the while."I am begging you, please let me go," I said with the last ounce of strength my body possessed. He wouldn't stop; in fact, he slapped me again. I looked away and froze my struggles when it did nothing to faze his advances. Akun heaved as he lowered his pants. I turned my head and sobbed into the stone floor.I squeezed my eyes shut, trying to transport myself to happy places. It was Zavi's face that I saw in my mind. He was my happy place.